THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


GIFT 


HISTORY  OF   MUSIC, 


Jfn;  %  Jf0rm  0f 


BY 

FREDERIC  LOUIS  RITTER, 


FIRST    SERIES. 


BOSTON: 

PUBLISHED   BY  OLIVER  DITSON   &  CO., 

277  WASHINGTON  STREET. 

NEW  YORK:   C.   H.   DITSON  &  CO, 

711  BROADWAY. 

1876. 


OF  CALIF.  LIBRABY,  LOS  ANGELES 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1870, 

By  OLIVER  DITSON  &  CO., 
Vn  the  Ofla**  of  ih*  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington, 


STEREOTYPED   BY   C   J.  PETERS  ft  SON, 
5  WASHINGTON    ST.,  BOSTON. 


Music 
Library 

HU 


iw 


INTRODUCTORY, 


To  the  young  artists  of  America,  in  whose 
hands  rests  the  musical  future  of  their  country, 
I  dedicate  the  following  pages.  Our  artists  are 
entering  on  a  new  phase  of  existence.  Our  pro- 
fession is  no  longer  here,  as  it  too  long  has  been, 
at  once  a  refuge,  an  exhibition  platform,  and  a 
gambling  bourse  for  ambitious  amateurs,  half- 
educated  artists,  unprincipled  speculators,  and 
undisciplined  critics.  This  state  of  things, 
that  generation,  is  passing  away :  humbug  and 
puffery  have  lost  half  their  power  ;  the  once 
pardonable  weakness,  that  formerly  excused 
national  artistic  short-comings  with  the  plea 
of  youth,  is  becoming  stale  and  meaningless. 
Our  musical  public  is  beginning  to  have  an 
opinion  of  its  own.  It  is  time  that  the  dawn 
of  a  school  of  American  art  should  appear  on 
the  horizon.  And  to  whom  shall  we  look  for  the 

3 


4  INTRODUCTORY. 

hastening,  the  ripening,  of  this  dawn,  if  not  to 
our  rising  artists  ? 

***** 
But  they  must  arm  themselves  with  courage, 
fortitude,  and,  above  all,  with  honest  artistic 
principles.  For  if  our  artists  are  unconvinced 
of  the  nobleness  of  their  mission,  the  sanctity  of 
their  profession,  the  great  duties  which  they 
owe  to  it  and  to  themselves,  with  what  hope 
shall  they,  as  a  class,  expect  justice  and  recog- 
nition from  the  general  public  ?  Although  this 
will  eventually  be  their  reward,  it  would  be 
worse  than  folly  for  one,  passing  through  the 
furnace  himself,  to  blind  the  eyes  of  his  young 
colleagues  to  the  trials  they  will  necessarily  be 
exposed  to  before  they  reach  their  goal.  I  do 
not  here  allude  to  the  so  often  injurious  influ- 
ences of  social  bonnes  fortunes,  the  flattery  of 
family  connections,  the  intoxication  of  seeing 
their  names  continually  and  favorably  adver- 
tised, —  enervating  influences  to  which  so  many 
promising  native  talents  have  succumbed,  sink- 
ing into  oblivion  at  precisely  the  period  of  life 
when  the  mind  should  have  attained  its  most 
harmonious  and  healthy  development ;  but  rather 
to  the  difficulties  that  beset  the  public  career  of 
the  truly  earnest  artist  in  America.  This  is 
not  the  place  to  enlarge  on  the  latter :  I  shall 
find  opportunity  hereafter  to  treat  fully  of  them. 


INTRODUCTORY.  5 

But  it  is  absolutely  necessary  that  I  should  at 
least  allude  to  the  Achilles  heel  of  our  present 
musical  situation,  from,  a  social  point  of  view 
especially. 

***** 

While  the  state  of  musical  culture  to-day 
offers  many  elements  which  justify  the  hopes 
of  all  lovers  of  music  ;  while  everywhere  we 
perceive  much  activity,  united  in  many  cases 
to  promising  talent,  —  yet  music  is,  by  many 
intelligent  people,  scarcely  regarded  as  an  art. 
Many  persons,  of  tolerably  liberal  views,  yet  con- 
sider it  merely  as  an  accessory  accomplishment, 
and  would  gladly  banish  it,  if  the  prevailing 
superficial  fashion  (so  much  to  be  regretted)  of 
knowing  how  to  play,  or  how  to  sing,  a  little, 
were  not  too  strong  to  be  resisted.  And  many 
consider  music  as  an  unfit  occupation  for  mascu- 
line minds. 

None  of  the  other  arts  is  encumbered  with  so 
many  prejudices  as  music.  Though  accessible 
to  every  human  being,  its  right  position  in  the 
family  of  arts  is,  in  many  cases,  underrated  ;  its 
philosophical  and  a3sthetical  meaning  entirely 
overlooked,  or  not  understood  at  all.  About 
none  of  the  other  arts  has  so  much  nonsense 
been  written,  as  about  music.  A  person  scarcely 
able  to  distinguish  one  tone  or  note  from  another, 
one  air  from  another,  will  not  hesitate  to  judge 


6  INTRODUCTORY. 

of,  and  condemn,  fine  musical  works  in  a  most 
imperative  manner ;  nay,  I  have  seen  criticisms, 
novels,  and  sketches,  on  musical  subjects,  writ- 
ten by  persons  who  could  not  sing  or  play  the 
simplest  tune,  and  to  whom  theory  was  a  terra 
incognita. 

In  our  day,  as  in  earlier  times,  we  find  man- 
kind making  music  the  vehicle  of  all  that  is 
good  and  bad.  Now  it  is  prescribed  for  medical 
purposes ;  then  it  has  to  serve  as  a  means  for 
educating  our  ill-tempered  youth :  now  it  has  to 
inspire  the  timid  soldier  with  patriotic  fire  ;  then 
it  is  invoked  as  a  helpmeet  by  the  frivolous, 
&c.,  &c.  But,  worse  than  all,  here  appears  an 
esteemed  author,  who  does  not  find  any  thing 
of  the  sort  in  music,  and  who  declares  that  it 
expresses  nothing  at  all :  it  is  merely  a  combina- 
tion of  agreeable  sounds,  to  please  our  sense  of 
hearing,  and  to  tickle  our  nerves  more  or  less. 
"  It  does  not  refine,"  he  says  ;  "  it  does  not  ele- 
vate ;  it  does  not  strengthen.  It  leaves  the 
moral  nature  quite  untouched.  It  has  no  moral, 
—  nay,  no  intellectual  influence." 

While  we  possess  many  technical  and  oestheti- 
cal  works  on  architecture,  sculpture,  painting, 
and  poetry,  within  the  comprehension  of  the 
general  public,  music  has,  as  yet,  to  struggle,  in 
order  to  find  its  due  and  true  place.  That 
which,  in  a  great  measure,  accounts  for  this 


INTRODUCTORY.  7 

state  of  things  is  the  one-sided  education  of 
our  musicians  themselves;  in  general,  at  least. 
Their  whole  attention  is  directed,  in  most 
instances,  towards  the  technical  side  of  musi- 
cal art.  Their  appreciation  of  the  history,  the 
philosophy,  of  their  art,  is  a  dark,  indistinct 
understanding  and  presentiment ;  and  many  of 
the  false  theories  about  music  are  due,  in  a 
great  extent,  to  their  want  of  a  more  general 
knowledge  and  logical  power.  Thus,  the  aes- 
thetical  side  of  music  is  entirely  in  the  hands  of 
philosophers  and  speculative  authors,  who  have, 
unfortunately,  not  the  necessary  technical  musi- 
cal education,  and  whose  theories,  therefore,  are 
built  on  sand.  Or  else  it  rests  in  the  hands  of 
amateur  authors,  who  write  about  the  art  as 
their  fancies  lead  them.  Of  course  there  are, 
everywhere,  honorable  exceptions. 

***** 

Music  is  not  an  isolated  art.  It  forms  a  most 
necessary  link  in  the  great  family  of  arts.  Its 
origin  is  to  be  looked  for  at  the  same  source  as 
that  of  the  other  arts.  Its  ideal  functions  are 
also  the  same. 

Art,  in  general,  is  that  magic  instrumentality 
by  means  of  which  man's  mind  reveals  to  man's 
senses  that  great  mystery,  the  beautiful.  The 
eye  sees  it ;  the  ear  hears  it ;  the  mind  conceives 
it ;  our  whole  being  feels  the  breath  of  God : 


8  INTRODUCTORY. 

but  to  penetrate,  in  its  full  signification,  that 
mystery,  that  charm  which  the  beautiful  thus 
exercises  over  us,  is  to  penetrate  the  incon- 
ceivable ways  of  God.  The  sense  of  the 
beautiful  is  that  God-like  spark  which  the  Crea- 
tor has  placed  in  the  soul  of  man ;  and  the 
necessity  of  giving  it  reality  is  that  irresistible 
power  which  makes  man  an  artist. 

Not  through  one  art-form  alone  does  the  idea 
of  the  beautiful  reveal  itself  to  us,  but,  as  in 
the  whole  creation,  through  many-sidedness. 
Though  different  in  their  forms,  which  are 
necessarily  dictated  by  the  material  which  every 
species  of  art  employs  in  order  to  express  itself, 
yet  the  one  idea  of  the  beautiful  is  contained  in 
all  art. 

To  say  that  it  requires  more  genius  to  create 
master-works  in  one  art  than  in  another  is 
certainly  a  wrong  assertion.  Shakspeare, 
Beethoven,  Michael  Angelo,  Phidias,  —  who 
can  prove  which  one  of  these  minds  was  the 
greatest  ? 

In  the  plastic  arts,  the  idea  of  the  beautiful 
is  expressed  through  outward  forms.  The  eye 
serves  the  mind  as  interpreter  of  that  ideal 
of  which  the  artist  finds  models  in  the  nature 
which  surrounds  him. 

In  music,  the  world,  with  its  emotions  and 
feelings,  is  driven  back  on  the  heart.  The  ideal 


INTRODUCTORY.  9 

of  the  artist  thus  rests  in  his  own  bosom.  The 
idea  of  the  beautiful  is  expressed  through  tone- 
fo'-ms,  which  the  ear  reveals  to  our  mind.  Thus, 
though  deeply  felt  by  every  man,  music's  real 
nature  is  less  understood  than  the  more  realistic 
plastic  arts ;  hence  the  dualism  of  which  I  have 
spoken  before. 

In  poetry,  the  objective  nature  of  the  plastic 
arts  and  the  subjectivity  of  music  are,  in  an 
ideal  sense,  united.  In  reading  the  description 
of  a  palace,  of  a  beautiful  figure,  of  a  landscape, 
our  mind  sees  those  objects  in  great  reality, 
while,  at  the  same  time,  the  peculiar  mood  in 
which  these  pictures,  when  associated  with  cer- 
tain lyric  and  tragic  situations,  place  us,  thrills 
our  soul  with  emotions  and  feelings  in  a  great 
degree  similar  to  those  awakened  by  music. 

Thus  the  aim  of  all  arts  is  the  same,  though 
every  one  of  them  arrives  at  its  own  ends  by 
different  roads.  Every  one  of  them  possesses, 
more  or  less,  its  moral,  refining,  ennobling  quali- 
ties ;  every  one  of  them  can  also  be  made  the 
vehicle  of  demoralization,  or  to  serve  frivolous 
purposes.  It  is  the  true  artist's  mission  to  keep 
his  ideal  of  the  beautiful,  in  all  its  forms,  chaste 
and  pure.  Not  by  descending  to  the  level  of 
every  day's  trivialities,  will  he  fulfil  this  noble 
mission,  but  by  lifting  up  his  eyes  towards  the 
purifying  atmosphere  of  the  God -like  ideal. 


10  INTRODUCTORY. 

Art  is  a  wonderful  mirror  of  man's  intellectual 
and  sensual  life,  elevated  into  the  regions  of  the 
beantiful.  Its  influence  upon  man's  mind  is 
thus  ennobling,  strengthening,  elevating.  Mu- 
sic is  a  member,  and  not  the  least,  in  the  family 
of  arts. 

#  *  *  *  * 

It  has  been  my  endeavor,  in  the  following 
lectures,  to  throw  light  on  those  early  periods  of 
musical  art,  scarcely  known  or  appreciated  by 
amateurs,  —  and  perhaps  I  do  not  exaggerate 
if  I  say,  by  the  great  majority  of  musicians  also. 
And  yet  how  important  is  it,  for  the  understand- 
ing of  our  modern  art-culture  (if  a  sound  and 
reliable  judgment  is  to  be  gained),  to  possess 
a  fair  knowledge  of  the  growth  and  development 
of  musical  forms.  Besides  the  instruction  this 
study  affords,  what  a  source  of  intellectual  and 
artistic  enjoyment  it  presents.  We,  at  the  same 
time,  follow  and  observe  the  different  changes 
of  forms  which  the  human  mind  creates,  in  order 
to  express  its  feelings  and  emotions  as  influenced 
by  the  current  thoughts  of  particular  times. 
Music  is  a  great,  and,  in  many  respects,  a  reli- 
able guide  in  the  study  of  human  progress  and 
development.  No  art  is  more  closely  connected 
with  the  inner  life  of  man  than  music,  whose 
magic  power  steps  in  at  precisely  the  point 
where  the  positive  expression  of  language  fails. 


INTRODUCTORY.  11 

The  very  essence  of  man's  existence,  it  partici- 
pates in  its  struggles,  triumphs,  reverses,  and 
necessarily  in  its  forms  -and  expressions  re- 
sembles those  different  phases. 

Every  one  conversant  with  the  literature  of 
musical  history  will  see  that  the  plan  and  execu- 
tion of  the  present  work  is  an  original  one.  It 
struck  me,  that,  in  this  way,  each  distinct  stage 
of  development  of  the  great  epochs  and  a.  t- 
forms  would  be  more  easily  comprehended.  Nor 
have  I  rested  it  solely  on  metaphysical  specula- 
tions. I  have  tried  its  efficiency  through  prac- 
tical experience.  The  outlines  of  this  form 
ripened  in  preparing  and  planning,  with  Madame 
Raymond  -  Ritter,  the  "  Historical  Recitals  " 
which  were  given  by  her  and  other  artists,  and 
which  we  destined  to  serve  as  sesthetical  illus- 
trations of  different  remarkable  schools  and 
periods  of  musical  art.  No  little  share  of  any 
satisfaction  which  my  readers  may  derive  from 
this  work  will  be  owing  to  my  dear  wife  and 
sister  artist,  whose  genuine  enthusiasm,  encour- 
agement, taste,  and  practical  assistance,  have 
proved  so  valuable  an  inspiration  to  me  while 
carrying  out  my  plan,  —  a  plan  the  more  difficult, 
on  account  of  my  having  undertaken  to  embody 
it  in  a,  to  me,  foreign  language. 

***** 

I  never  was  prejudiced  or  influenced,  in  speak- 


12  IN  TR  OD  UCTOR  Y. 

ing  of  the  different  masters,  by  the' nationality, 
or  the  school,  to  which  they  or  their  labors 
belonged.  I  strove,  as  much  as  lay  in  my 
power,  to  deduce,  from  those  of  their  works 
which  were  accessible  to  me,  their  individual 
importance  as  influencing  and  directing  the 
growth  of  life  and  art.  I  never  accepted  any 
judgment,  any  opinion,  of  an  important  historical 
fact,  or  aesthetic  appreciation  of  important  works, 
that  marked  or  prepared  an  era  in  music,  until 
after  a  conscientious,  careful  examination,  com- 
parison, and  study  of  the  most  reliable  sources 
which  were  at  my  disposal,  and  most  of  which 
are  in  my  own  possession.  (This  I  need  hardly 
say,  for  the  almost  utter  want  of  musical  libra- 
ries and  of  private  collections,  on  this  continent, 
is  a  well-known  fact,  and  a  frequent  subject  of 
remark  and  regret  among  students.) 

Though,  according  to  my  adopted  plan,  I  was, 
in  a  certain  sense,  limited  as  to  time  and  space, 
I  endeavored  to  present  a  comprehensive  and 
complete  picture  of  each  important  epoch  in  our 
art.  It  was  not  iry  aim  to  entertain  my  reader, 
merely,  with  the  enumeration  of  names  and 
dates,  but  to  bring  him  in  lively  and  intellectual 
contact  with,  and  relation  to,  the  still,  in  many 
respects,  mysterious  means  and  ways  which  that 
beautiful  art  employs  to  reach  its  own  ends  and 
to  fulfil  its  mission. 


INTR  OD  UCTOR  Y.  13 

My  book,  therefore,  does  not  pretend  to  be  an 
exhaustive  history  of  music,  but,  rather,  a 
friendly,  and,  I  trust,  a  thoroughly  reliable, 
guide,  to  incite  and  direct  those  musical  students 
who  feel  the  desire,  the  want,  of  a  deeper  and 
more  general  knowledge  of,  and  information  as 
to,  the  growth  and  progress  of  their  art  than  is 
common ;  to  encourage  and  strengthen  the  tal- 
ented, the  striving  one,  in  his  unavoidably  ardu- 
ous and  difficult  labors  and  struggles ;  to  point 
out  to  the  timid  and  undecided  the  imperative 
and  necessary  duties  of  the  true  artist ;  to  hold 
up  a  faithful  mirror  of  art-life  to  the  inex- 
perienced, impatient  aspirant  for  artistic  fame. 

But,  alas !  how  many  stop  on  the  path  that 
leads  to  the  temple  of  art,  to  think  of  the  great 
minds  that  prepared  that  path  for  them,  and 
who  not  seldom,  amidst  the  greatest  trials 
and  mental  sufferings,  poured  out  for  us  that 
cup  of  delight  which  men  empty,  time  after 
time,  in  naive  and  ungrateful  ignorance  ?  How 
many  of  those  whose  business  it  should  be  to 
see  a  little  farther  than  the  narrow  walls  of  their 
own  being,  feel  any  desire  to  understand  the 
historical  development  of  their  art  ?  And  yet, 
without  this  understanding,  how  is  a  broad 
musical  culture  to  be  gained?  how  is  the  sure 
foundation  of  future  progress  to  be  secured  ? 


14  INTRODUCTORY. 

1  shall  often  have  occasion,  in  the  course  of  my 
lectures,  to  point  out  the  great  industry,  the  iron 
perseverance,  and  the  deep  devotion  displayed  by 
our  most  eminent  masters,  not  alone  in  creating 
original  works  after  works,  but  also  in  studying, 
with  the  utmost  diligence  and  thoroughness,  the 
works  of  their  predecessors.  They  knew  how 
to  respect  the  good  qualities  of  those  who  lived 
and  toiled  before  them,  as  well  as  those  of  their 
contemporaries.  And  they  had  not  the  same 
advantages  that  we  have,  in  being  able  to  pro- 
cure for  little  money  the  model  scores  inevitably 
necessary  to  the  student.  They  were  forced  to 
copy  the  good  compositions  that  chance  threw  in 
their  way.  But  in  this  manner  they  gained  that 
great  mastery  in  the  technical  execution  of  all 
the  different  arts  of  counterpoint  which  enabled 
them  to  write  such  quantities  of  perfect  works. 
It  was  not  all  genius  that  made  these  masters 
so  great,  as  many  are  led  to  believe  :  their  emi- 
nence was  also,  and  in  no  small  measure,  the 
result  of  persevering,  continual,  well-directed, 
deep  study  of  the  fundamental  rules  and  princi- 
ples of  their  art.  Has  not  one  of  the  most  gifted 
poets  and  industrious  men  that  ever  lived  — 
Goethe  —  said,  that  "genius  is  only  another 
word  for  industry  "  ?  Only  when  a  sure  basis 
was  gained  by  such  industry,  did  they  begin  to 
improve  upon  the  old  forms,  and  become  able  to 


INTRODUCTORY.  15 

create  new  ones.  They  did  not  set  up  for  critics 
•while  they  were  still  scholars  ;  they  did  not  at- 
tempt to  become  innovators  before  they  knew 
the  alphabet  of  their  art.  Read  the  reliable 
biographies  of  eminent  composers ;  study  their 
own  utterances  about  their  art,  —  how  they 
clung  to  their  adopted  good  principles.  Before 
giving  way  to  pecuniary  inducements,  they  first 
satisfied  their  sense  of  duty  as  artists.  How  is 
it  in  this  respect  with  our  young  students  ? 
Scarcely  yet  able  to  write  a  succession  of  com- 
mon chords  with  grammatical  correctness,  they 
already  besiege  the  publisher.  They  have  nei- 
ther time  nor  perseverance  to  go  through  the 
necessary  preliminary,  earnest  studies.  They 
are  all  geniuses  (much-abused  title !)  ;  and 
geniuses  do  not  need,  they  think,  to  study. 
They  create  and  dictate  their  own  laws  ;  but 
they  generally  awaken  too  late  from  their  delu- 
sive dream.  A  few  years  ago,  a  young  man  of 
this  city  came  to  ask  my  advice  as  to  becoming 
a  musician  and  a  composer.  He  had  some  tri- 
fles, and  a  mass  in  manuscript,  with  him.  I  dis- 
covered in  these  crude  productions  some  promis- 
ing talent,  and  gladly  laid  out  a  plan  of  study 
for  him,  based  on  our  European  ideas  of  what  is 
required  from  a  composer.  The  young  man  was 
astonished  at  the  severity  and  length  of  study 
required,  and  said  to  me.  "Don't  you  think. 


1C  INTRODUCTORY. 

that,  if  I  should  work  very  hard  for  two  years, 
I  would  be  able  to  compose  an  opera  like  '  Tro- 
vatore,'  or  a  '  Requiem '  like  Mozart's,  and  then 
make  a  great  deal  of  money  by  it  ?  " 

I  have  since  sought  to  hear  tidings  of  the  new 
Trovatore  and  the  Requiem,  but,  so  far,  unsuc- 
cessfully. This  is  only  one  of  many  examples  I 
could  give.  The  genuine  masters  took  delight 
in  work  itself,  and  waited  patiently  for  their  re- 
ward :  our  young  aspirants  would  like  to  take 
the  reward  first,  and  to  dispense  with  the 
drudgery  altogether. 

***,** 

Thus  far  the  present  series  of  lectures  em- 
braces the  following  distinct  epochs :  — 

FIRST  LECTURE. 

The  Gregorian  Chant,  the  Folk-song,  Trouba- 
dour-song, and  the  invention  of  harmony ;  from 
the  Christian  era  to  the  latter  part  of  the  four- 
teenth century. 

SECOND  LECTURE. 

The  old  Flemish,  German,  English,  Italian 
and  Spanish  schools  (the  great  epoch  of  Catho 
lie  church-music  and  the  Madrigal)  ;  from  tht, 
latter  part  of  the  fourteenth   century  to  the 
death  of  Palestrina. 


INTRODUCTORY.  17 

THIRD  LECTURE. 

The  Oratorio,  including  the  Passion,  the  Mys- 
tery, and  Miracle  plays,  and  Protestant  church- 
music  ;  from  the  twelfth  century  to  the  death  of 
Schumann. 

FOURTH  LECTURE. 

The  Opera,  from  its  first  invention  in  Italy  to 
the  death  of  Gluck. 

FIFTH  LECTURE. 

The  development  of  instrumental  music ; 
from  the  sixteenth  century  to  Haydn. 

I  hope  to  be  able  to  offer,  in  the  course  of 
next  season,  a  second  and  closing  series,  which 
will  include,  Catholic  and  English-Protestant 
church-music,  from  the  death  of  Palestrina  to 
our  own  time ;  The  modern  opera  after 
Gluck;  Instrumental  music  since  Ph.  E.  Bach 
and  Haydn  to  our  own  day;  also  a  historical 
sketch  of  music  in  America;  and  a  succinct 
history  of  the  literature  of  musical  art.  This 
will  cover  the  whole  field  of  musical  history, 
treated  as  fully  as  possible  in  the  form  and  limits 
I  have  selected.  An  alphabetic  index  of  the 
principal  subjects  treated  of  in  the  work  will 
also  be  added  to  the  second  series. 

FREDERIC    LOUIS   RITTER. 

NEW  YORK,  Sept.  1,  1870. 


HISTORY    OF    MUSIC. 


FIRST    LECTURE. 

The  Gregorian  Chant.  —  The  Folk-song.  —  The  Invention  of 
Harmony,  and  the  Troubadours.  —  From  the  Christian  Era  to 
the  latter  part  of  the  Fourteenth  Century. 


cradle  of  music  as  an  art,  in  the  sense 
JL  we  understand  it  to-day,  may  be  traced  back 
to  that  of  Christianity.  The~Old  World  had 
fulfilled  its  destiny,  and  the  good  tidings  of  the 
new  gospel  were  heard  in  Palestine  :  the  hopes 
of  a  future  and  a  better  life  filled  the  hearts  of 
men. 

With  Christianity,  a  new  civilization  grad- 
ually took  the  place  of  that  of  the  Romans  : 
the  internal  corruption  of  the  Roman  empire 
hastened  its  downfall,  and  undermined  all  that 
which  even  the  continual  invasions  of  barbarians 
had  spared.  With  the  new  religion,  men's 
thoughts  were  led  to  nobler,  loftier  aspirations  : 

19 


20  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

the  idea  of  a  loving,  pardoning  God  inspired 
them. 

Musip,  the  deeper  expression  of  men's  emo- 
tions and  joys,  found  then  a  more  fructifying 
field  to  take  root  in ;  and,  with  the  growth  of 
Christianity,  music,  as  an  eminently  Christian 
art,  began  to  flourish,  and  accompanied,  as  a 
faithful  servant,  the  altars  of  the  new  gospel. 

We  have  no  real  knowledge  of  the  exact 
character  of  the  music  which  formed  a  part  of 
the  religious  devotion  of  the  first  Christian 
congregations.  It  was,  however,  purely  vocal. 
Instrumental  music  was  excluded,  at  first,  from 
the  church  service.  It  was  despised,  as  having 
been  used  by  the  Romans  at  then?  depraved 
festivities ;  and  every  thing  reminding  them  of 
heathen  worship  could  not  be  endured  by  the 
new  religionists.  As  late  as  the  fourth  century, 
St.  Hieronimus  says,  speaking  of  the  degraded 
state  of  Roman  spectacles,  "  A  Christian  maid 
should  not  know  what  a  lyre  or  a  flute  is, 
and  what  their  use  is."  This  strict  confinement 
to  purely  vocal  music  was,  however,  more  ad- 
hered to  in  the  churches  of  the  Occident ;  for 
in  the  Orient,  with  the  multiplication  of  Chris- 
tian congregations,  the  custom  of  introducing 
instrumental  music  in  the  church  service,  after 
the  manner  of  the  heathen,  became  more  and 
more  general. 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  21 

It  is  presumed  that  some  of  the  hymns  and 
psalms  of  the  early  Christians  were  taken  from 
the  Hebrew  temple  service,  and  some  were  of 
Greek  origin.  The_peculiar  versification  of  the 
Psalms  gave  rise  to  the  antiplwnal  or  alternate 
ehant,  sung  by  priests  and  people.  This  form, 
being  also  used  at  the  services  of  the  Greek 
temple,  was  no  doubt  imitated  by  the  Oriental 
Christians ;  and  from  them  it  found  its  way  to 
the  churches  of  the  Occident.  How  much  the 
first  Christians  loved  their  hymns  and  singing, 
and  resolved  not  to  abandon  them,  even  amid 
the  greatest  persecutions  they  were  at  first  ex- 
posed to,  is  proven  by  a  passage  of  Plinius  from 
the  beginning  of  the  second  century.  He  says, 
"  On  certain  days,  they  will  assemble  before  sun- 
rise, and  sing  alternately  (antiphonal)  the  praise 
of  their  God."  And  another  writer,  speaking  of 
the  sect  of  Therapeutists,  says,  "  After  supper, 
their  sacred  songs  began.  When  all  were  arisen, 
they  selected  from  the  rest  two  choirs,  —  one  of 
men,  and  one  of  women,  —  in  order  to  celebrate 
some  festival ;  and  from  each  of  these  a  person 
of  a  majestic  form,  and  well  skilled  in  music,  was 
chosen  to  lead  the  band.  They  then  chanted 
hymns  in  honor  of  God,  composed  in  different 
measures  and  modulations,  now  singing  to- 
gether, and  now  answering  each  other  by 
turns." 


22  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

Also  that  persons  of  all  ages  and  of  both 
sexes  participated  in  the  singing  of  psalms  and 
hymns,  is  proven  by  a  passage  of  St.  Eusobius ; 
where,  speaking  of  the  consecration  of  the  new 
churches,  he  says,  "  that  there  was  one  common 
consent  in  chanting  forth  the  praises  of  God : 
the  performance  of  the  service  was  exact ;  the 
rites  of  the  church  were  decent  and  majestic ; 
and  there  was  a  place  appointed  for  those  who 
sang  psalms,  — r-  youths  and  virgins,  old  men  and 
young" 

The  more  the  new  religion  found  disciples, 
the  more  it  was  found  necessary  to  bring  unity 
into  the  form  of  the  church  service :  and,  as  sing- 
ing of  hymns  and  psalms  formed  a  principal  part 
in  it,  §t.  Ambrose,  Bishop  of  Milan  from  374  to 
397,  not  only  encouraged  the  setting  and  com- 
posing of  hymns,  but  he  also  collected  many 
among  those  already  in  use  ;  and  history  attrib- 
utes to  him  the  having  chosen  and  fixed  four 
diatonic  scales,  as  foundation  for  the  music  of 
the  hymns.  The  following  are  said  to  be  those 
scales :  — 

1.       -A-titlientic  Keys,  or  Scales. 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

which  are  called,  after  him,  Ambrosian  ecclesias- 
tical keys.  St.  Ambrose  was  a  warm  admirer 
of  music,  and  is  said  to  have  written  the  words 
of  many  hymns.  The  celebrated  "  Te  Deurn 
Laudamus,"  however,  is  erroneously  attributed 
to  him  :  it  is  of  Oriental  origin,  and  probably 
adapted  from  the  Greek  Church.  St.  Augus- 
tine, the  friend  of  St.  Ambrose,  speaks  of  the 
great  delight  he  received  in  hearing  the  singing 
of  hymns  and  psalms  at  the  church  of  Milan,  in 
the  following  terms:  "The  voices  flowed  in  at  my 
ears,  truth  was  distilled  into  my  heart,  and  the 
affection  of  piety  overflowed  in  sweet  tears  of 

joy!" 

But  in  those  times,  though  new  Christian 
churches  sprang  up  everywhere  amidst  persecu- 
tion, it  was  not  yet  possible  to  preserve  a  uni- 
form manner  in  the  music,  which  made  such  an 
essential  part  of  the  service.  The  melodies  and 
chants  of  St.  Ambrose  changed,  and  lost  much 
of  their  primitive  purity. 

It  was  then  reserved  to  St.  Gregory  the  Great 
who  was  at  the  head  of  the  Christian  Church 
from  591  to  604,  to  reform  and  regenerate  the 
entire  musical  part  of  the  church  service. 

St.  Gregory  was  not  only  full  of  religious  en- 
thusiasm, but  he  was  also  fond  of,  and  a  con- 
noisseur in,  music.  He  collected  the  best  hymns 
existing,  is  said  to  have  written  and  composed 


24  HISTORY  OF  ML' SIC. 

* 

many  himself,  arranged  the  liturgy  fcr  the  Chris- 
tian service  according  to  the  Church  year,  and 
had  the  whole  written  in  a  book,  called  an 
Antiphonar,  which  he  deposited  upon  the  altar 
of  St.  Peter,  fastened  with  a  chain,  and  which 
he  intended  to  serve  as  a  foundation  and  un- 
changeable direction  for  all  time  to  come.  This 
Gregorian  chant  is  also  called  cantus  firmus,  or 
cantus  planus.  St.  Gregory  added  to  the  four 
scales  ascribed  to  St.  Ambrose  four  more,  calling 
the  first  authentic,  and  the  others  plagal.  Here 
are  the  four  plagal  scales :  — 

2.  IPlag-al  Keys,  or  Scales. 

-g-T- 


These  ecclesiastical  keys,  or  scales,  as  estab- 
lished or  accepted  by  St.  Gregorj^,  were  thus  dis- 
tinguished :  — 

First  tone  D.     Dorian. 

Second  tone  A.     ^Eolian. 

Third  tone  E.     Phrygian. 

Fourth  tone  B.     Hypophrygian. 

Fifth  tone  F.     Lydian. 

Sixth  tone  C.     Ionian. 

Seventh  tone  G.     Mixolydian. 

Eighth  tone  D.     Dorian. 


UISTOIIY  OF  MUSIC.  Ii5 

It  was  not  until  the  sixteenth  century  that  the 
Greek  names  were  affixed  to  these  keys,  princi- 
pally through  the  teachings  of  Glareanus. 

It  is  presumed,  and,  indeed,  admitted,  by 
many  modern  writers  on  music,  that  the  scales 
which  St.  Ambrose  and  St.  Gregory  laid  as  the 
foundation  for  the  melodies  and  chants  of  their 
hymns  and  psalms  were  taken  from  the  musical 
system  of  the  Greeks. 

St.  Gregory,  whose  influence  was  so  beneficial 
to  the  advancement  of  true  church  music,  worked 
unceasingly  for  its  introduction  and  study.  He 
erected  singing-schools  in  Rome,  and  was  him- 
self often  present,  and  watched  the  instruction. 
The  characters  which  St.  Gregory  used  to  note 
the  chants  of  the  Antiphonar  were  the  neumce,  — 
small  crooks  and  strokes  of  various  shapes  and 
positions,  placed  over  the  words  to  designate 
the  pitch  and  the  duration  of  the  sound.  When 
these  signs  were  used  without  lines,  they 
must  have  been  very  uncertain  guides ;  and  an 
old  author  says,  "  These  irregular  signs  must 
have  been  productive  of  more^  error  than  sci- 
ence, as  they  were  often  so  carelessly  and  pro- 
miscuously placed,  that,  while  one  was  singing 
a  semitone  or  a  fourth,  others  would  sing  a  third 
or  a  fifth."  In  the  course  of  the  next  century, 
one  line  was  first  used ;  and  then  two  lines  were 
drawn,  and  the  places  of  the  neumce  were  thus 


2G  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

fixed  with  more  certainty.  The  Gregorian  chant 
soon  found  its  way  to  other  countries  where  the 
Christian  religion  took  the  place  of  heathen 
worship  :  in  604  and  606,  Roman  singers  ap- 
peared in  Gaul  and  Britanny ;  and,  in  the  latter 
country,  vocal  music  especially  flourished.  In 
752,  Pope  Stephen  II.  sent  twelve  singers  to 
Pepin  of  France  ;  and  in  Germany,  where  the 
conversion  of  the  heathen  was  vigorously  pushed 
forward,  the  apostle  St.  Boniface  founded  several 
singing-schools  at  the  seats  of  bishops  and  in 
convents.  But  very  often  these  schools  only 
succeeded  as  long  as  those  enthusiastic  apostles 
were  at  the  head  of  them:  if  they  died,  the 
people  would  fall  back  again  into  their  wild 
and  barbarous  state.  John  Diaconus,  the  biog- 
rapher of  St.  Gregory,  says,  that,  among  all 
European  nations,  the  Gauls  and  the  Ale- 
manni  were  the  least  fitted  to  understand  and 
execute  the  Gregorian  chant  in  its  purity  ;  be- 
cause they  would  always  mix  it  up  with  some  of 
their  own.  "  Their  rough  voices,  roaring  like 
thunder,  are  not  capable  of  soft  modulation ;  for 
their  throats,  hardened  by  drink,  cannot  execute 
with  flexibility  what  a  tender  melody  requires. 
Indeed,  their  voices  give  out  tones  similar  to  the 
rumbling  of  a  baggage-wagon  rolling  down  from 
a  height ;  and,  instead  of  touching  the  hearts  of 
their  hearers,  they  only  fill  them  with  aversion.5' 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  27 

Under  the  reign  of  Charlemagne,  from  768  to 
814,  church  music  made  great  progress  in  the 
different  countries  of  his  great  empire.  Charle- 
magne, who  was  so  powerful  a  support  of  the 
Christian  religion,  was-  very  fond  of  music  ;  and 
the  singing  of  hymns  and  psalms  was  zealously 
taught  at  his  high-schools,  and  very  often  under 
his  own  supervision.  To  preserve  the  Gregorian 
liturgical  manner  of  singing  in  its  purity,  and  to 
realize  unity  in  the  service  of  the  different 
churches  of  his  empire,  he  had  singing-masters 
sent  from  Rome  at  different  times,  and  erected 
singing-schools  at  Metz  and  Soissons.  Charle- 
magne himself  paid  several  visits  to  the  pope  in 
Rome.  There  always  existed  disputes  and 
jealousies  between  the  Roman  and  Gallic  sing- 
ers, as  to  whom  should  belong  the  right  to  sing 
at  the  emperor's  service  while  in  Rome. 

"  The  French  pretended  to  sing  better  and 
more  agreeably  than  the  Italians ;  and  the  Ital- 
ians, on  the  contrary,  regarding  themselves  as 
more  learned  in  ecclesiastical  music,  which  they 
had  been  taught  by  St.  Gregory  (or,  rather,  ac- 
cording to  the  true  tradition  of  St.  Gregory's 
teachings),  accused  their  competitors  of  corrupt- 
ing, disfiguring,  and  spoiling  the  true  chant. 
The  dispute  being  brought  before  the  emperor, 
the  French,  thinking  themselves  sure  of  his? 
countenance,  insulted  the  Roman  singers,  who, 


^8  IIISl OR Y  OF  MUSIC. 

on  their  part,  emboldened  by  superior  knowl« 
edge,  and  comparing  the  musical  abilities  of 
their  great  master,  St.  Gregory,  with  the  igno- 
rance and  rusticity  of  their  rivals,  treated  them 
as  fools  and  barbarians.  As  their  altercation 
was  not  likely  to  come  to  a  speedy  issue,  the 
most  pious  emperor,  Charles,  asked  his  chanters 
which  they  thought  to  be  the  purest  and  best 
water,  that  which  was  drawn  from  the  source 
at  the  fountain-head,  or  that,  which,  after  being 
mixed  with  turbid  and  muddy  rivulets,  was 
found  at  a  great  distance  from  the  original 
spring?  They  cried  out,  unanimously,  that  all 
water  must  be  most  pure  at  the  source  :  upon 
which  the  Emperor  said, '  Mount  ye,  then,  up  to 
the  pure  fountain  of  St.  Gregory,  whose  chant 
ye  have  manifestly  corrupted.' ' 

All  that  we  know  of  the  state  of  music,  till  up 
to  the  ninth  century,  shows  that,  all  the  hymns 
and  psalms  were  single-voiced,  —  that  is  to  say, 
sung  in  unison ;  although  some  few  rare  efforts 
towards  discovering  and  introducing  harmony 
—  that  is,  the  singing  of  various  parts  simul- 
taneously —  were  made  by  different  learned  and 
industrious  monks  in  their  solitude. 

It  would  lead  me  too  far  to  relate  here  all  the 
learned  historical  speculations  of  this  u  that 
savant,  whether  it  was  the  Celtic  or  German  race 
that  first  made  use  of  harmony.  The  hypothesis 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  29 

that  it  was  most  probably  invented  by  the  Celts 
is  based  on  the  following  fact :  this  people  pos-- 
sessed,  among  other  musical  instruments,  a  kind 
of  violin,  in  a  primitive  and  rough  state,  called 
Rotta,  Grwth,  Crotta,  &c.  The  instrument  was 
overstrung  with  several  strings  of  different 
pitch,  and  it  was  played  with  a  bow.  This  leads 
very  naturally  to  the  supposition  that  it  was 
more  than  probable  that  chords  could  be  drawn 
from  the  Grwth.  With  the  little  light  history 
and  science  have  as  yet  thrown  on  this  subject, 
it  is  difficult  to  trace  from  the  use  of  the  Grwth 
the  gradual  introduction  of  harmony  in  music, 
as  a  form  which  stamps  our  musical  art,  at  the 
same  time,  as  entirely  different  from  that  of  the 
old  world.  It  seems,  however,  safe  to  admit  the 
fact,  that  with  the  migration  of  the  northern 
tribes  into  the  southern  provinces  of  Europe, 
and  their  final  settlement  thare,  harmonious 
music  became  gradually  known  and  practised. 

The  oldest  historical  document  of  which  we 
have  any  knowledge,  on  harmony,  in  the  modern 
acceptation  of  the  term,  is  by  Isidore,  Arch- 
bishop of  Seville,  who  lived  at  the  time  of  St. 
Gregory  (from  570  to  636),  and  whose  friend  he 
was.  Isidore  says,  in  his  "  Sentences  on  Music," 
u  Harmonious  music  is  a  modulation  of  the 
voice :  it  is  also  the  union  of  simultaneous 
sounds."  He  also  speaks  of  two  lamb  of  har- 


30  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

mony,  /Symphony  and  Diaphony.  By  the  first 
word  he  meant  probably  a  combination  of  con- 
sonant, and  by  the  latter  of  dissonant  intervals. 
Though  we  possess  here  explicit  rules  for  the 
use  of  harmony,  it  took  several  centuries  of 
labor  and  experiment  before  men  were  able  to 
create  works,  even  in  a  simple  sense,  in  which 
melody  and  harmony  concurred  to  give  adequate 
enjoyment.  The  state  of  society,  and  the  con- 
tinual invasions  of  barbarians  into  the  Roman 
empire,  devastating  all  that  opposed  their  pas- 
sage, hindered  the  peaceful  cultivation  of  arts 
and  sciences,  —  all  intellectual  life  remaining, 
so  to  speak,  in  suspense  ;  and  communications 
were  then  so  scarce,  that  even  the  improvements 
which  some  monks  made,  scarcely  went  farther 
than  the  walls  of  their  own  monastery.  Thus 
the  soil  was  not  advantageous  to  the  progress 
of  music,  although  the  musical  liturgy  was  en- 
riched, during  this  period,  by  many  new  chants. 
But,  without  gradual  perfection  and  use  of 
harmony,  musical  art,  in  our  sense,  would  have 
remained  stationary,  partaking  the  fate  of  Greek 
music,  and  less  rich  in  rhythm.  Greek  music, 
as  far  as  we  understand  it,  closely  followed  the 
rhythm  of  that  rich  language  :  "  being  especial- 
ly vocal,  it  was  every  where  governed  by  the 
peculiarity  of  the  syllables,  and,  therefore,  re- 
duced to  fixed  limits.  We  are,  throughout,  led 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  31 

to  the  opinion,  that  there  existed  a  great  harmo- 
ny between  the  poetical  and  musical  composition 
of  the  Greeks ;  that  is  to  say,  they  never  wedded 
to  the  text  a  music,  which,  being  perhaps  beau- 
tiful in  itself,  forced  and  distorted  the  words 
and  syllables,  and  thus  rendered  the  meaning  of 
this  text  obscure,  and  a  mere  play  of  sound."  * 
In  the  Gregorian  chant,  notes  of  equal  value  ac- 
companied the  different  syllables ;  but  it  cannot 
be  said  that  it  was  void  of  all  rhythm,  as,  in  exe- 
cution, the  proper  accents  of  the  words  were 
always  considered.  St.  Gregory  certainly  chose 
this  manner  of  chanting,  as  being  more  majestic, 
more  solemn,  more  adapted  to  the  worship  of  a 
large  Christian  congregation.  Although  appar- 
ently monotonous,  the  Gregorian  chant  bore 
within  itself  the  germ  of  a  more  melodious  inde- 
pendence than  the  so  much  praised  Greek  music, 
as  it  did  not  follow  the  syllables  in  such  a  sla- 
vish manner ;  for  we  already  find  groups  of  many 
notes  sung  as  ornaments  upon  certain  vowels, 
principally  at  the  close  of  sentences  in  masses, 
hymns,  and  psalms.  The  great  influence  and 
importance  of  the  Gregorian  chant  in  music, 
regarded  as  the  modern  Christian  art,  cannot  be 
too  highly  estimated.  A  freer  tone-life  began 
to  reveal  itself  in  the  art  of  song  under  St. 
Gregory :  from  the  life  of  sentiment,  deepened 

*  Dr.  John  H.  Schmidt:  Die  antike  Compositions  lehre. 


32  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

and  enriched  by  the  inspiring  influence  of  Chris- 
tianity, sprang  a  more  independent  tone-speech. 
A  tone-language,  indeed,  "in  which  faith,  belief, 
and  feeling  expressed  themselves  in  such  a  man- 
ner, that,  in  St.  Gregory's  time,  it  was  said  that 
the  holy  man  had  received  from  a  higher  spirit- 
ual world  the  power  of  creating  such  songs.'' 
The  Gregorian  chant  is  the  central  point  from 
which  all  older  compositions  for  the  Catholic 
Church  proceeded,  and  upon  which  they  rested. 
The  classic  forms  of  the  old  masses,  motets,  and 
hymns,  including  the  works  of  Palestrina  and 
his  school,  sprang  from  the  Gregorian  chant.  In 
fact,  it  will  remain  the  foundation  of  all  true 
Catholic  church-music. 

It  needed  only  one  step,  and  the  solid  founda- 
tion of  that  beautiful  art-temple,  which  stands  in 
its  wonderful  glory  before  us  to-day,  would  be 
laid ;  and  this  step  was  the  discovery  of  harmo- 
ny, and  its  general  use  in  the  practice  of  choral 
music. 

The  first  author  known  to  us  as  having  left  a^ 
treatise  on  harmony,  in  which  the  rules  are; 
illustrated,  at  the  same  tune,  by  practical  exam- 
ples, was  a  Flemish  monk,  Hucbald  of  St. 
Am  and,  in  Flanders,  who  lived  at  the  end  of  the 
ninth  and  at  the  beginning  of  the  tenth  centu- 
ries. In  Hucbald's  time,  music  in  several  parts, 
called  to-day  "  polyphonic,"  was  not  yet  known 
\™  fhp.  term  "harmonious  music,"  or  "harmony," 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  <J^ 

but  by  that  of  "  orgarium,"  or  "  diaphony."  The 
intervals  which  composed  these  parts  were  called 
"  symphonies."  The  specimens  which  the  learned 
monk  gives  us  of  the  harmony  or  organum  in  use 
in  his  time  are  very  crude,  and  sound  to  our  ears 
not  very  pleasant;  as  he  employed,  and,  according 
to  the  renowned  old  Greek  system,  allowed,  only 
a  succession  of  perfect  consonants,  which  are  the 
fourth,  the  fifth,  and  the  octave.  One  would  not 
trust  his  ears  on  hearing  the  organum  of  Hue- 
bald,  but  would  think  it.  impossible  that  such 
had  ever  been  in  practice  ;  yet  it  seems  there  is 
no  doubt  about  it.  The  good  monk  himself,  in 
giving  the  necessary  rules  for  employing  the 
symphonies,  or  intervals,  in  composing  the  or- 
ganum, recommends  them  as  sweet  and  agree- 
able in  their  effect  upon  the  ear.*  Here  is 
one  of  his  specimens  as  an  example  :  — 


vi  -  vi  -  mus  be  -  nc  -  di  -  ci  -<inu.s  Do  - 


-  mi  -  num  ex  hoc  nunc  et     us  -  que  in      sae  -  cu-lum. 

*  Though  this  form  of  ITiicbald's  organum  has  boon  admitted  by  aL 
the  most  reliable  musical  historians,  Dr.  ().  Paul  maintains  that  the  or- 
ganum is  a  sort  of  counterpoint,  in  which  one  voice  imitates  the  other  in 
the  octave,  the  fifth,  and  fourth.    If  this  explanation  of  the  organum  it 
to  be  admitted,  then  great  injustice  has  been  done  to  our  venerable  old 
author.    The  subject,  however,  has  not  yet  been  cleared  up. 


34  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

In  the  dark  days  of  the  middle  ages,  the 
monies,  in  whose  hands  the  meagre  cultivation 
of  literature  and  science  then  almost  exclusively 
rested,  and  who  slavishly  followed — as  much 
as  their  knowledge  would  allow  them — the 
works  of  Greek  and  Roman  authors,  tried,  for 
centuries,  to  deduce  their  rules  for  the  science 
of  music  from  what  they  could  gather  at  the 
same  source ;  but  the  author  considered  for  a 
long  time  as  the  oracle  by  musical  writers  was 
Boetfiius  (from  about  476  to  525.)  There  was 
a  hard  and  long  struggle,  however,  between  the 
theory  and  practice  of  music.  The  Chris- 
tian singers,  led  by  empiricism,  admitted  and  in- 
troduced forms  in  their  songs  which  did  not 
accord  with  the  rules  of  Greek  authors  and 
Boethius ;  hence  the  confusion  and  complications 
which  rested  heavily  upon  the  progress  of  musi- 
cal art.  It  is,  therefore,  not  astonishing  when  we 
read  that  it  took  half  a  man's  life-time  to  make 
himself  master  of  the  rudiments  of  music  in 
those  days,  as  the  rules  were  so  many  and  diffi- 
cult to  learn.  It  was  then  thought  that  no  one 
could  be  a  good  teacher  of  philosophy  or  theol- 
ogy, without  possessing  a  knowledge  of  music. 
Under  these  circumstances,  it  was  well  that  a 
man  appeared,  who,  endowed  with  great  practi- 
cal sense,  partly  removed  these  difficulties,  cre- 
ated a  new  and  simpler  method  of  teaching,  and 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC-  35 

brought  musical  notation  to  greater  perfection. 
This  teacher  was  Cf-uido  of  Arezzo,  who  lived  in 
the  early  part  of  the  eleventh  century,  and  was  a 
monk  in  the  Benedictine  monastery  in  Pomposa, 
in  Italy.  Guido,  like  St.  Gregory  and  Hucbuld, 
probably,  also  used  the  letters  A,  B,  C,  D,  E, 
F,  G,  to  designate  the  tones  of  the  scale,  and 
the  neumce  as  musical  characters.  A  really 
great  merit  of  his  was  that  of  adding  two  more 
lines  to  those  already  existing,  and  thus  giving 
the  neumce  a  more  fixed  place.  Two  of  the  four 
lines  were  black :  of  the  other  two,  the  second 
of  the  four  lines  was  red,  the  fourth  was  yellow, 
and  sometimes  green.  The  red  line  fixed  the 
tone  F,  the  yellow  the  tone  C.  From  this 
dates  the  use  of  our  F,  or  bass  clef,  and  the  C 
clef. 

Guido  was  a  good  practical  teacher,  and  was 
accustomed  to  explain  by  word  of  mouth  many 
of  the  existing  difficulties  in  musical  practice. 
A  proof  of  this  is,  that  he  enabled  his  pupils,  in  a 
comparatively  short  time,  to  read  any  chant  at 
first  sight,  which  the  other  singers  never  could 
do  in  all  their  lives.  He  is  also  the  originatoi 
of  the  solmization  by  means  of  the  syllables  ut. 
re,  mi,  fa,  sol,  la.  To  teach  singing  at  first 
sight  to  his  pupils,  Guido  used  an  air  which  was 
so  peculiarly  constructed  that  every  other  line 
('verse)  began  with  a  tone  one  degree  highei 


36  niSTOKY  OF  MUSIC, 

than  the  previous  one  :.  the  first  commenced  on 
C,  the  next  on  D,  the  third  on  E,  the  fourth  on 
F,  the  fifth  on  G,  the  sixth  on  A.  The  writing 
of  the  Sapphic  strophe  is  attributed  to  Paul 
Diaconus,  who  was  a  contemporary  of  Charle- 
magne (780-800).  Here  is  the  hymn: 


Ut  quo  -  ant    la  -     -  xis.  •  lie-  so  -  na  -  re       n-bris. 


Ji  -  ra       gos  -  to  -  rum.  Fa-mu-li     tu  -  o  -  -  rum. 


Sol  -  ve         pollu-ti  Labi-i  re  -  atum   iSan  -  cto  Johannes. 

Every  profession  in  those  days  had  its  patron  , 
and,  St.  John  being  then  worshipped  as  the  pat- 
ron of  singers,  this  hymn  was  sung  in  his  honor, 
and  was  considered  a  remedy  against  hoarseness. 
The  so-called  Guidonian  hand^  by  means  of 
which  solmization  and  the  ecclesiastical  keys 
were  taught,  in  those  times,  calling  the  top  of 
the  thumb  Gamma  (G),  and  applying  the  names 
of  the  rest  of  the  notes  to  the  joints  of  each  fin- 
ger, is  also  ascribed  to  him,  though  perhaps  er- 
roneously, as  it  more  probably  owes  its  origin 
and  development  to  some  of  his  disciples.  It 
found  its  way  to  all  countries  of  Europe,  and 
contributed  much  towards  the  study  of  musical 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  37 

theory.  As  a  harmonist,  Guiclo  did  not  go  much 
beyond  Hucbald.  No  teacher  or  musical  author 
obtained  such  a  popular  reputation  after  his 
death  as  Guido  :  all  that  was  taught,  improved, 
invented,  in  musical  branches,  through  the  elev- 
enth, twelfth,  thirteenth,  and  fourteenth  centu- 
ries, was  attributed  to  him.  "  Guido,"  says  Bur- 
ney,  "is  one  of  those  favored  names,  to  Avhich 
the  liberality  of  posterity  sets  no  bounds.  He 
has  long  been  regarded,  in  the  empire  of  music, 
as  lord  of  the  manor,  to  whom  all  strays  revert, 
—  not  indeed  as  chattels  to  which  he  is  known  to 
have  an  inherent  right  and  natural  title,  but  such 
as  accident  has  put  into  the  power  of  his  bene- 
factors ;  and  when  once  mankind  has  acquired  i 
habit  of  generosity,  unlimited  by  -envy  and  riva 
claims,  they  wait  not  till  the  plate  or  charity 
box  is  held  out  to  them,  but  give  freely  and 
unsolicited  whatever  they  find  without  loss  or 
effort." 

With  the  experience  and  facility  church-sing- 
ers gained,  no  doubt  Hucbald's  and  Guide's  or- 
ganum,  or  diaphony,  would  not  always  satisfy 
them  ;  and  a  species  of  harmony  sprang  up,  -  - 
although  it  existed  at  first  only  in  practice,  — 
which  exercised  a  great  influence  upon  music 
of  simultaneous  sound,  and  even  upon  the  organ  • 
um  itself.  This  was  the  discantus  or  counter- 
point (as  it  was  afterwards  called),  at  the  enj 


38  HISTORY   OF  MUSIC'. 

of  the  eleventh,  or  at  the  commencement  of  the 
twelfth,  centuries.  The  cantus  firmut  or  cantus 
planus  of  St.  Gregory,  and  in  its  crude  harmoni- 
zations in  the  organum,  consisted  of  notes  of 
equal  value.  In  executing  these  chants,  they 
were  either  sung  in  unison,  or,  as  in  the  orga- 
num, the  parts  moved  closely  together.  The  neu- 
mce,  the  musical  characters  of  this  epoch,  were 
found  sufficient  to  determine  the  pitch  of  the 
tones  for  the  singers,  as  rhythm  and  measure,  in 
our  sense,  were  not  yet  observed.  In  the  dis- 
cantus  (descant),  which  consisted  of  two  or  more 
parts,  a  given  melody,  generally  a  Gregorian 
chant,  called  tenor  (that  is,  "to  hold"),  formed 
the  foundation ;  and.  accompanying  it,  one,  two 
or  three  parts  were  invented,  probably  first  im- 
provised. The  different  parts  which  composed 
the  descant  were  not  always  sung  in  tones  of 
the  same  value,  like  the  organum.  To  keep  these 
parts  together  in  a  tolerably  harmonious  manner, 
it  was,  no  doubt,  soon  discovered  that  a  certain 
understanding  was  necessary  respecting  the 
value  of  the  different  notes  representing  the 
tones,  and  the  time  they  were  to  be  sung  in. 
All  this  led  to  the  discovery  of  measured  music, 
or  the  time-table^ —  mensural  music,  as  it  was  then 
called.  Through  frequent  practising  and  experi- 
mentalizing, the  ears  of  singers  became  more  and 
more  sensible  to  the  disagreeable  and  barbarous 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  39 

effect  of  a  continual  succession  of  fourths,  fifths, 
and  octaves,  as  we  find  in  the  organum.  Thirds 
and  sixths  being  excluded  from  practical  use  by 
the  old  Greek  system,  the  theorists  of  all  this 
epoch,  slavish  imitators  of  the  renowned  Greek 
system,  excluded  them  also.  But  in  closely 
pursuing  the  progress  of  musical  art,  as  much  as 
the  meagre  documents  left  to  us  of  those  dark 
times  allow,  we  must  admit,  that,  in  practice, 
singers  were  far  ahead  of  the  theorists  ;  and,  step 
by  step,  these  latter  had  to  record,  and  —  which 
is  their  real  merit  —  systemize  for  further  use 
and  development,  that  which  others  found,  or 
admitted  through  tradition.  In  this  way,  the 
real  meaning  of  consonances  and  dissonances, 
and  a  more  appropriate  and  effective  use  of  them, 
must,  indeed,  have  been  known  long  before  writ- 
ers on  music  acquainted  us  with  the  change. 
Franco  de  C'ologne  is  considered  the  earliest 
writer  on  mensural  music.  He  lived  in  the 
beginning  of  the  thirteenth  century.  In  his 
work  on  music,  "Musica  et  Ars  Cantus  Mensura- 
lilis"  he  speaks  of  the  different  value  of  the 
notes. 

Formerly  there  were  only  two,  —  longa,  B^, 
and  brevis,  •  :  he  already  has  four,  with  the 
corresponding  rests,  —  duplex  longa,  ••],  longa , 
brevis,  and  semi-brevis,  +  . 


40  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

5.  Rests. 

Perfect  Longa,  three  beats.      Imperfect  Longa,  two  beats. 


Brevis.  Semi-brcvis.  Final  pause. 


He  also  mentions  two  kinds  of  time,  —  the  per- 
fect and  the  imperfect.  Triple  time  he  calls  per- 
fect (trinity  being  the  substance  of  all  perfection), 
and  common  time  was  imperfect.  The  bars,  a? 
indicating  the  measures,  were  not  yet  in  use  :  a 
longa  and  a  brevis  representing  three,  and  a  longa 
two,  the  singers  counted  according  to  the  value 
of  these  notes.  In  the  explanations  he  gives  of 
the  consonances  and  dissonances,  and  in  the  use 
of  them,  Franco  already  approximates  to  our 
ideas  of  them,  although  he  still  ranks  the  sixths 
among  dissonances.  The  description  and  rules 
he  gives  of  the  discantus,  in  three,  four,  and  five 
parts,  show  an  immense  progress  over  the  old  or- 
ganum. 

Mensural  music,  as  explained  and  probably 
perfected  by  Franco,  was  gradually  introduced 
and  adopted  by  church-singers  and  theorists. 
A  marked  distinction  began  already  to  be 
established,  in  the  treatises  on  music,  between 
mensural  music  as  a  species,  and  the  cantus  plan- 
us  of  St.  Gregory.  It  found  its  way,  and  was 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  41 

cultivated  with  great  success,  in  England,  very 
soon  after  Franco's  teachings.  Commentators  on 
Franco's  works  —  or,  at  least,  theorists  who  took 
Franco's  works  as  a  basis,  although  they  do  not 
show  great  progress  beyond  him  —  were  Walter 
Odington  of  Evesham,  under  the  reign  of  Hen- 
ry III.,  and  Hieronimus  de  Moravia,  about  1260. 
Of  more  importance  to  the  development  of  men- 
sural music  and  harmony  were  Marchetto  di 
Padua,  in  the  latter  part  of  the  twelfth,  and  at 
the  beginning  of  the  thirteenth  centuries;  and 
Jean  de  Muris,  about  1330,  doctor  of  the  Sor- 
bonne  at  Paris,  famous  as  a  philosopher,  mathe- 
matician, and  writer  on  music.  Many  of  the 
rules  he  gave  for  the  use  of  consonant  and  dis- 
sonant intervals  in  polyphonic  writing  still  pos- 
sess value. 

As  I  shall  often  have  occasion  to  make  use  of 
the  expressions  "  consonance  "  and  "  dissonance," 
I  will  here  give  the  explanation  of  those  terms. 
The  difference  between  two  musical  sounds,  or 
tones,  as  regards  their  pitch,  is  called  an  "  inter- 
val." The  nature  of  the  sound  produced  by  two 
or  more  intervals,  when  sung  or  played  together, 
is  either  consonant  or  dissonant.  Franco  ex- 
plained consonance  and  dissonance  in  the  folio  \v- 
ing  manner,  which  explanation,  indeed,  sufficed 
for  theorists  until  our  day :  "  Two  or  more 
voices  or  parts,  harmonizing,  when  sung  together. 


42  PJIST\)RY  OF  MUSIC. 

in  a  mamiei  agreeable  to  the  ear,  form  a  conso- 
nance. Dissonance,  on  the  contrary,  when  two 
parts  are  united  so  as  to  sound  disagreeable  to 
the  ear."  Now,  consonant  means,  in  general, 
agreeable  ;  dissonant,  disagreeable  :  but  as,  in  a 
more  particular  sense,  the  materials  out  of  which 
our  musical  harmony  is  formed  can  never  be 
disagreeable  without  ceasing  to  be  music,  we 
must  find  a  more  generic  explanation  of  conso- 
nant and  dissonant  intervals.  Every  tone  is  the 
product  of  a  certain  number  of  vibrations,  either 
through  the  human  voice,  or  through  artificial 
means.  If,  in  sounding  two  different  tones  si- 
multaneously, the  number  of  vibrations  of  the 
one  is  in  a  simple  proportion  to  the  number  of 
vibrations  of  the  other,  then  the  ear  receives 
the  sound  in  a  satisfactory  manner,  and  we  term 
such  intervals  "consonances"  (for  the  ear,  like 
the  mind,  sooner  comprehends  that  which  is  of 
simple  proportion) :  the  octave  is  like  1  to  2  ; 
the  fifth,  2:3;  the  fourth,  3:4;  the  major 
third,  4:5;  the  major  sixth,  3:5;  the  minor 
third,  5:6;  the  minor  sixth,  5  :  8.  These  inter- 
vals are  all  more  or  less  perfect  consonances. 
If,  on  the  other  hand,  the  number  of  vibrations 
of  two  different  tones  is  so  multiplied  as  to  render 
their  relative  proportions  more  complicated,  then 
the  ear  receives  the  sound  in  an  unsatisfactory 
manner,  and  we  term  the  intervals  thus  pro« 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  W 

rtuced,  "  dissonance ;  "  the  major  second,  8  :  9. 
and  9  : 10 ;  the  minor  second,  15  : 16 ;  the  major 
seventh,  8  :  15  ;  the  minor  seventh,  9  :  16,  &c. 
(The  two  figures  represent  two  tones :  during 
the  same  period  of  time  the  first  tone  vibrates, 
say  three  times,  the  second  vibrates  four  times, 
&c.)  Now,  all  the  different  intervals  which 
musical  practice  has  admitted,  form  a  gradual 
chain  of  more  or  less  satisfactory  sounds,  from 
the  restful  and  most  perfect  consonance,  to  the 
sharpest,  most  restless,  and  exciting  dissonance. 
Their  skilful  use,  based  upon  a  true  musical 
sentiment,  and  thorough  study  of  the  nature  of 
these  different  intervals,  plays  a  most  important 
part  in  the  true  composer's  productions.  "  The 
dissonances,"  ingeniously  says  Printz,  in  his 
"  Phrynis  "  (1696),  "  are  the  darkness,  the  con- 
sonances the  light:  the  light  would  not  be  as 
agreeable  to  us  if  it  were  always  day  and  never 
night.  The  dissonances  are  the  bitter,  the 
consonances  the  sweet:  the  sweet  would  never 
be  as  agreeable  if  we  had  not  also  tasted  the 
bitter." 

There  also  existed  in  the  middle  ages,  besides 
the  descant,  another  kind  of  counterpoint,  or 
music  in  different  parts,  generally  for  three 
voices,  which  was  called  falso-bordone,  or  faux- 
bourdon. 

This  kind  of  harmony  consisted  of  a  succes- 


44  t  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

sion  of  chords  of  the  sixth,  over   a   Gregorian 
chant,  as  cantus  firmus. 

O. 


iMr* 


The  falso-bordone  seems  to  have  originated  in 
France,  and  was  thence  introduced  in  the  pope's 
chapel.  With  the  new  discoveries  and  the 
greater  facilities  for  mastering  the  material,  no 
doubt  many  extravagances  found  their  way  into 
the  manner  of  singing  the  discantus,  or  descant, 
to  the  displeasure  of  many  a  Christian :  on  the 
other  hand,  many,  out  of  habit,  clung  to  the  old 
organum,  and  condemned  the  new  descant  as 
profanation  of  the  divine  service.  So  Pope  John 
XXII.,  in  the  year  1322,  issued  a  decree,  at 
Avignon,  in  which  he  reminded  the  clergy  of 
the  proper  manner  in  which  church  singing 
should  be  fixed ;  and,  speaking  of  the  disciples 
of  the  new  school  of  music,  says,  "  that  those 
who  were  captivated  with  it,  attending  the  new 
notes  and  new  measures  of  the  disciples  of  the 
new  school,  would  rather  have  their  ears  tickled 
with  semibreves  and  minims,  and  such  frivolous 
inventions,  than  hear  the  ancient  ecclesiastical 


HISTORY   OF   MUSIC.  45 

chant."  But,  notwithstanding  the  frivolous 
invention,  the  descant  and  the  falso-bordone 
found  their  way  even  to  the  pope's  chapel, 
where  they  were  cultivated  with  great  success, 
and  prepared  the  way  for  those  great  master- 
pieces of  Josquin  des  Pres,  Orlanclus  Lassus, 
Palestrina,  and  many  others,  which  afterwards 
adorned  the  Catholic  Church. 

We  have  seen,  through  the  preceding  narrative, 
that  several  centuries  of  labor,  experiment,  and 
in  many  cases,  no  doubt,  of  disappointment, 
passed  until  fixed  rules  for  the  general  use  of 
harmony  were  established.  Nevertheless,  those 
preliminary,  long,  and  tedious  labors  were  neces- 
sary, before  men,  gifted  by  the  hand  of  God 
with  genius,  could  create  the  glorious  works 
that  delight  us ;  in  which  the  whole  power  of 
melodious  charm,  wedded  to  rich  and  exquisite 
harmony,  speaks  to  us  in  so  sublime  a  language : 
a  language  never  dreamed  of  by  those  monks, 
faithful  and  restless  gatherers  of  the  first  crude 
and  coy  material,  and  who  certainly  thought 
wonders  of  the  barbarous  sounds  of  their  beloved 
organum.  But,  thanks  to  the  devotion  and  in- 
dustry of  these  monks  in  their  solitary  cells, 
they  saved  the  remains  of  the  great  intellectual 
life  of  old  Greece  and  Rome  from  titter  destruc- 
tion, and,  through  their  speculations  and  experi- 
ments in  arts  and  sciences,  often,  no  doubt,  very 


46  HISTOllY  OF  MUSIC. 

pedantic  and  seemingly  insignificant,  unknow- 
ingly«owed  the  seed  of  many  an  art-form  of 
which  ye  reap  the  rich  and  delicious  fruit  to- 
day. 

The  folk-song  is  an  outgrowth  from  the  life  of 
the  people.  It  is  a  direct  naturalistic  efflux  of 
popular  lyric  song ;  unassisted  by  art,  it  is  true, 
but  yet  the  product  of  innate  artistic  instinct  in 
the  people,  seeking  a  more  lofty  expression  than 
that  of  every-day  speech  for  those  feelings  which 
are  awakened  in  the  soul  by  the  varied  events 
of  life.  The  first  authors  of  the  folk-song  are, 
with  very  few  exceptions,  unknown  :  they  were 
either  men  and  women  of  the  people,  who,  with 
unembarrassed  simplicity,  and  unaware  of  the 
laws  of  art,  described,  with  free  originality,  that 
which  lived  and  moved  in  the  soul  of  the  people ; 
or  they  were  artists,  who  were  so  inwardly  con- 
nected with  the  people  in  their  feelings  and  mode 
of  expression,  that  their  productions  seem  to 
spring  from  the  same  source.  On  one  side 
purely  human  feeling,  on  the  other  side  national 
character,  are  truthfully  reflected  in  the  folk- 
song :  in  it  the  characteristics  of  a  nation  are  so 
faithfully  displayed,  that  it  not  only  betrays  its 
origin,  but  also  enables  us  to  judge,  through  its 
distinguishing  features,  of  the  relationship  exist- 
ing between  different  races  of  men.  The  un- 
wearying attraction  of  the  folk-song  consists  of 


HISTOBT  OF  MUSIC.  47 

the  freshness,  originality,  and  unconcealed  truth- 
fulness with  which  every  natural  movement  of 
the  soul  is  expressed;  nor  is  it  only  healthy 
realism  that  charms  us  in  it.  There  we  also 
find  presentiments  of  a  lofty,  noble  ideal,  and 
such  an  exquisite  sense  of  real  poetic  beauty, 
breaking  through  the  rind  of  natural  growth,  as 
assures  to  the  best  of  these  songs  an  imperish- 
able existence. 

There  is  no  doubt  that  the  ancient  nations  — 
the  Hebrews,  the  Greeks,  the  Romans,  &c. — 
possessed  many  folk-songs:  yet  none  of  them, 
as  far  as  we  can  judge,  have  come  down  to  us ; 
and,  although  it  is  presumed  that  some  of  these 
songs  found  their  way  into  the  Christian  Church, 
history  fails  to  give  any  distinct  proof  of  it. 
Through  the  confusion  caused  in  the  political 
and  social  state  of  European  nations  by  the  mi- 
gration of  the  German  races  in  the  fifth  and  sixth 
centuries,  and  through  the  uncertain  state  of  the 
different  languages  mixed  up  with  each  other, 
the  cultivation  of  poetry  was  out  of  the  question  ; 
and,  of  course,  secular  music  had  as  yet  no  foun- 
dation. It  was  not  until  a  new  civilization  took 
the  place  of  disorder  and  anarchy,  that  poetry 
and  song  began  to  adorn  the  homes  of  the  new 
inhabitants. 

In  the  history  of  the  development  of  our  Euro- 
pean or  Occidental  music,  —  which  in  its  forma 


48  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

tion  is  ruled  bj"  entirely  different  laws  from 
those  of  the  Oriental  nations, —  the  folk-song  is  of 
the  greatest  importance.  The  folk-song  and  the 
Gregorian  song  are  the  two  factors  that  form  the 
foundation  upon  which  all  forms  of  our  musical 
art  rest.  Though  each  one  of  them  followed,  in 
the  course  of  time,  altogether  different  roads,  yet 
we  shall  see  that  they  sometimes  lend  each  other 
their  individual  charms.  The  Gregorian  chant, 
creating  its  own  peculiar  tonalities, — the  ecclesi- 
astical keys,  —  and  enriched  by  the  invention 
of  harmony,  which  gave  to  these  tonalities  a 
still  more  solemn,  characteristic,  church-like 
coloring,  is  thus  at  once  distinct  from  any  pre- 
vious effort  of  temple  music  ;  at  all  events,  as 
far  as  we  can  judge  from  the  historical  records 
transmitted  to  us  on  this  subject.  The  Gre- 
gorian chant  was  thus  raised  to  the  highest  form 
of  art-song.  The  folk-song  puts  its  whole  signi- 
fication in  melodious  expression,  being  limited  to 
the  more  narrow  circle  of  the  naive  sentiment 
of  the  poetry  which  gives  it  meaning :  human 
reality  and  emotion  are  its  functions.  The  Gre- 
gorian chant  points  to  the  infinite  beyond.  The 
tonality  of  the  folk-song,  resting  in  general  upon 
the  key  and  the  dominant,  is  simpler  in  its  formal 
construction  than  that  of  the  Gregorian  chant. 

Though  old  chronicles   have    preserved  and 
transmitted  to  us  the  words  of  many  a  German, 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC,  49 

Italian,  French,  and  Spanish  folk-song,  popular 
at  certain  periods  of  the  middle  ages,  yet  the 
melodies  of  these  songs  have,  unfortunately,  not 
all  been  noted  down,  and  are,  therefore,  not  ail 
known  to  us.  What  we  possess  of  such  melo- 
dies are,  for  the  most  part,  from  the  latter  half 
of  the  fourteenth  century,  when  composers  — 
contrapuntists,  as  they  were  called  —  made  some 
of  the  most  popular  melodies  the  theme  of  their 
masses  and  motets.  I  shall  speak,  in  my  second 
lecture,  of  this  peculiar  manner.  Many  of  the 
folk-songs  of  the  Celtic  races,  such  as  the  Scots, 
Irish,  Welsh,  and  the  Bretons  of  France,  are  un- 
doubtedly of  very  ancient  origin.  A  number  of 
them  must  have  existed  long  before  the  intro- 
duction of  the  Christian  religion.  In  examining 
these  original  characteristic  melodies,  so  full  of 
a  peculiar  poetical  charm,  one  cannot  help  won- 
dering at  the  fact  that  these  people  never  made 
a  mark  in  the  higher  culture  of  music,  and,  as 
far  as  history  records,  never  sent  forth  a  com- 
poser in  whose  genius  the  art-world  has 
found  concentrated  all  the  poetic  individual 
characteristics  of  the  musically-gifted  Celtic 
race. 

Belonging  to  another  class  of  folk-song,  but 
pointing  already  to  the  art-song,  are  the  songs  of 
the  troubadours,  the  minstrels,  and  the  minne- 
singers. It  seems  that  the  love  for  lyric  poetry 


50  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

and  song  combined  was  first  manifested  by  the 
counts  and  knights  of  the  south  of  France,  and 
especially  by  the  nobles  of  Provence ;  for,  in  the 
twelfth  century,  the  influence  of  the  culture  of 
poetry  and  song  was  already  felt,  as  more  re- 
fined manners  began  to  regulate  the  barbarous 
customs  of  the  warlike  and  quarrelsome  barons. 
At  the  time  of  the  Crusades,  the  order  of  the 
troubadours  and  minstrels  augmented  consid- 
erably all  over  Europe. 

"  In  Provence,  on  the  flowery  shores  of  the 
Durance,  in  the  land  where  Grecian  culture, 
tended  by  the  Romans,  had  never  wholly  been 
destroyed ;  where  the  arts  of  peace  had  long 
flourished,  and  yet  more  richly  after  the  migra- 
tions of  the  nations,  and  in  emulation  of  the 
Spanish  Arabs ;  under  the  brilliant  heaven  of 
Southern  France,  where  nature,  womanly  beauty, 
manly  courage,  and  courtly  manners  lent  their 
highest  charms  to  life,  —  the  luxuriant  flower  of 
lyric  song  sprang  forth  among  the  troubadours. 
It  is  true  that  the  music  and  poetry  of  the  trou- 
badours was  a  natural  outgrowth  of  that  epoch 
of  stirring  life,  — of  love,  longing,  hatred,  joy,  and 
melancholy  ;  but  every  mental  growth  demands 
its  appropriate  soil,  and  only  in  the  highest  circles 
could  an  appropriate  field  for  lyric  song  then 
exist.  Though  the  profession  of  singer  had 
been  regarded  as  an  honorable  one  since  the 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  51 

time  of  the  Gallic  bards,  and  though  the  jon- 
gleurs  (musical  and  poetical  conjurors,  who 
travelled  from  castle  to  castle  for  the  entertain- 
ment of  barbarous  chieftains)  had  preceded  the 
troubadours,  it  was  only  towards  the  end  of  the 
eleventh  century  that  it  came  to  be  considered 
as  a  matter  of  perhaps  more  consequence  that  a 
youthful  knight  should  know  how  to  compose, 
sing,  and  play,  than  that  he  should  invent  verses, 
and  read  and  write  correctly.  The  art  of  the 
troubadour  was  entitled  the  gai  saber  (or  gaia 
science^),  and  to  the  idea  of  gayety  a  noble 
meaning  was  attached.  The  true  chevalier,  it 
was  said,  should  never  lose  his  normal  feeling 
of  enthusiasm  and  joy :  like  an  interior  sun,  the 
joy  of  love  should  illuminate  his  life,  and  con- 
tinually excite  him  to  noble  actions  and  fortitude 
in  trial,  purifying  his  soul  from  envious,  sombre 
sadness,  from  avarice,  torpidity,  and  hardness  of 
mind.  Melancholy  was  regarded  as  a  morbid 
feeling,  born  of  scepticism  and  degeneracy,  a 
want  of  power  to  accomplish  great  deeds  or 
duties.  Gayety,  or  joy,  was  a  state  of  mind 
regarded  by  the  troubadours  as  corresponding 
with  that  of  religious  grace.  The  end  of  their 
profession  was  the  service  of  religion,  honor, 
and  woman,  in  deed  and  in  song.  One  of  their 
mottoes  was,  '  Love  and  religion  protect  all  the 
virtues ; '  another  ran,  '  My  soul  to  God,  mj 


52  HISTOItY  OF  MUSIC. 

life  for  the  king,  my  heart  for  my  lady,  my 
honor  for  myself.' 

"  The  troubadour  most  esteemed  was  he  who 
could  invent,  compose,  and  accompany  his  own 
songs ;  but  those  who  were  unable  to  play  the 
instruments  of  the  period,  —  the  harp,  lute,  viola, 
or  citara  (the  ancient  Irish  rota  or  crowth),  — 
were  accompanied  by  a  salaried  minstrel :  in 
the  South,  these  minstrels  were  termed  jon- 
gleurs, or  violars.  If  a  troubadour  was  not  gifted 
with  a  fine  voice,  he  employed  a  singer  (canta- 
dor,  or  rnusar)  to  perform  the  songs  which  he 
could  create,  but  not  sing. 

"  The  merit  of  the  troubadours  in  furthering 
the  progress  of  music  as  an  art  was,  that  they 
liberated  melody  from  the  fetters  of  calculation, 
gave  it  the  stamp  of  individuality,  and  bore  it 
on  the  wings  of  fancy  into  the  domains  of  sen- 
timent. They  had  the  further  merit  of  intro- 
ducing new  and  peculiar  rhythmic  changes  of 
time,  which,  apparently  irregular,  were  really 
forcible,  symmetrical,  and  original.  It  is  also 
more  than  probable,  that  the  troubadours  re- 
ceived new  ideas,  in  regard  to  melody,  from  the 
East ;  as  they  found,  among  the  Arabs,  not  only 
a  different  system  of  tones,  but  many  fanciful 
vocal  ornaments,  then  unknown  in  Europe,  and 
which  they  introduced  in  their  own  songs  on 
their  return  from  the  Crusades.  But,  as  harmonv 


HISTORY   OF  MUSIC.  63 

was  in  that  day  yet  undeveloped,  the  flowing 
vine  of  melody  received  little  support  from  it, 
and  therefore  often  appears  weak.  The  rules 
of  composition  were  then  highly  complicated 
and  ill-classified  :  yet  they  were  well  understood 
by  the  best-educated  troubadours  ;  and  though 
their  earlier  songs  were  stiff,  closely  resembling 
the  Gregorian  chant  in  form  and  style,  in  some 
of  the  latter  ones  we  find  graceful  melodies  that 
leave  little  to  be  desired,  and  that  possess  more 
real  variety  and  individuality  of  character  than 
do  the  words  attached  to  them.  Their  charm  is, 
to  the  intelligent  musician,  unique,  genuine, 
healthy,  vigorous,  and  sweet  as  the  songs  of  a 
choir  of  birds  heard  on  a  spring  morning,  in 
the  heart  of  a  fresh  and  dewy  wood,  when  the 
wind  is  blowing  and  the  sun  shining."  • 

The  most  celebrated  of  the  troubadours  were 
Adam  de  la  Hale,  G-aucem  Faidit,  Thibaut  (King 
of  Navarre),  and  the  CJiatelain  de  Goucy.  Quite 
a  number  of  their  songs  have  come  down  to  us. 
Here  is  the  music  of  two  of  Adam  de  la  Hale's 
songs.  The  first  is  a  descant,  or  counterpoint, 
set  for  three  voices.  Though  crude  and  awk- 
ward in  the  harmonization,  it  already  shows,  in 
many  respects,  quite  a  progress  in  the  difficult  art 
of  counterpoint.  The  sense  of  the  words  at- 
tached to  this  music  is,  "  As  long  as  I  live  J 

*  Fanny  Raymond  Bitter :  Essay  on  the  Troubadours,  &c. 


54 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 


will  love  you,  and  never  depart  from  my  word.' 
The  second,  "  Robin  m'aime,  Robin  m'a  de- 
mandeY'  is  an  air  from  an  interesting  little  play 
called  "  Robin  and  Marion."  This  play  may  be 
considered  as  the  earliest  precursor  of  the  opera. 
I  need  hardly  say,  that  I  have  added  the  harmo- 
nization of  this  charming  chanson.  Adam  de 
la  Hale  lived  during  the  latter  half  of  the  thir- 
teenth century. 


—I. 

>^r 

^=a^E^==f 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 


We  have  already  seen  that  the  Gregorian 
chant  and  the  folk-song  were  the  seeds  of  the 
subsequent  growth  of  musical  art.  Through 
increasing  civilization,  the  soil  was  prepared, 
little  by  little,  to  receive  these  seeds.  The 
Church  guarded  and  nourished,  with  solicitude, 
its  own  tender  plant,  —  the  Gregorian  chant,  — 
which,  in  the  following  century,  shot  forth 
strong  branches,  capable  of  producing  wonder- 
ful fruit  in  the  sixteenth  century.  The  folk- 


56  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

song,  long  abandoned  to  itself,  transplanted,  as 
chance  would  have  it,  to  all  the  different  cli- 
mates of  social  and  religions  evolutions  of  the 
people,  overtook  its  more  favored  companion, 
the  Gregorian  chant,  towards  the  beginning  of 
the  seventeenth  century,  and,  as  I  shall  prove 
in  my  lectures  on  the  musical  drama  and  instru- 
mental music,  supplanted  it  altogether  ;  for,  with 
the  perfection  of  the  musical  drama  and  in- 
strumental music,  the  tonality  which  governed 
the  folk-song  gradually  became  the  pivot  upon 
which  all  modern  musical  art-forms  were  hence  • 
forward  to  turn. 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  57 


SECOND    LECTURE. 

The  old  Flemish,  German,  English,  Italian,  and  Spanish  schools 
(the  great  epoch  of  Catholic  church-music,  and  the  madri- 
gal) ;  from  the  fourteenth  century  to  the  death  of  Palestrina. 

IN  my  first  lecture,  I  traced  the  timid,  uncer- 
tain, and  slow  step  of  musical  art,  until  it  came 
somewhat  near  that  which  we  call  music.  It 
was  in  its  infancy ;  but  the  vigorous  new  life, 
the  natural  healthiness,  the  rich  imagination 
which  those  Goths,  those  Franks,  those  Aleman- 
ni,  those  Saxons,  —  in  two  words,  the  German 
element,  intensified  and  purified  by  the  civiliz- 
ing influence  of  Christianity,  —  infused  into  the 
more  or  less  depraved  nations  of  the  demoralized 
Roman  empire,  was  a  fitting  nourishment  for 
music,  the  youngest  member  in  the  family  of 
arts. 

Until  now,  we  have  seen  the  different  nations 
of  Europe  participating  with  equal  success  in 
the  meagre  cultivation  of  musical  art,  as  it  then 
existed.  Towards  the  latter  part  of  the  four 
teenth  century,  however,  the  scene  changes,  and 
we  perceive  different  nations  taking  the  lead, 


58  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

sometimes  for  more  than  a  century,  and  impress 
ing  their  own  individuality  upon  all  styles  of 
art-form.     These  nations  were   principally   the 
Netherlander s    (Dutch*),   the    Italians,  and    the 
Germans. 

Though  the  power  of  the  old  Roman  empire 
was  annihilated,  under  the  destructive  strokes  of 
the  different  German  tribes,  a  new  and  no  less 
powerful  one  began  to  subjugate  the  various 
new  kingdoms ;  and  that  was  feudalism.  It 
may  be,  that  the  victorious  tribes,  then  in  pro- 
cess of  formation  and  assimilation  into  nations, 
yet  continually  fighting  among  themselves, 
needed  a  hard  lesson  of  humiliation  and  moral 
subordination,  before  their  rough  and  awkward 
natures  were  fitted  to  appreciate  and  understand 
the  advantages  of  the  new  civilization  and  reli- 
gion :  but  it  is  certain  that  power  was  misused, 
and  an  endeavor  was  made  to  crush  out  liberty 
among  the  people.  At  the  same  time,  we  must 
give  the  Church  the  credit  of  having  protected 
the  tender  germs  of  infant  art  and  literature. 
Towards  the  latter  part  of  the  middle  ages,  the 
morning  of  a  new  and  powerful  intellectual  life 
began  to  dawn.  Renewed  industry  and  com- 
merce created  wealth.  "  In  large  and  flourishing 
cities,  the  sense  of  liberty  and  independence 
from  the  pressure  of  feudalic  rule  united  the 
citizens  in  powerful  corporations.  With  wealth 


BISTORT  OF  MUSIC.  59 

and  liberty,  literature,  art,  and  science  found  a 
convenient  and  fructifying  field.  From  Italy, 
the  new  light  spread  over  the  other  European 
countries.  The  Italians,  everywhere  surrounded 
by  the  sublime  remains  of  old  Greek  and  Roman 
art,  first  awoke  from  the  lethargy  and  confusion 
caused  by  that  great  migration  of  northern  na- 
tions. In  Bologna,  Pisa,  Padua,  Parma,  Naples. 
and  other  cities,  universities  and  high-schools 
were  founded,  where,  it  is  said,  thousands  of 
students  from  all  countries  flocked,  to  listen  to 
the  teaching  of  great  masters  ;  and,  of  this  rich, 
healthy,  and  varied  spectacle,  Dante  was  the 
great  and  lofty  central  figure. 

It  is,  however,  curious  to  observe  that  Italy, 
the  alma  mater  of  all  Europe  in  those  times,  re- 
ceived her  first  musical  works  of  any  importance 
from  foreign  composers.  Foreign  musicians,  Ul- 
tramontanes,  as  they  were  called,  stood  at  the 
head  of  her  schools  of  music,  chapels,  and  church 
choirs  for  more  than  a  century  ;  and  these  were 
principally  Netherlander.  It  seems  that  the 
inhabitants  of  the  Low  Countries  first  availed 
themselves  of  the  advantages  and  blessings  of 
more  liberal  institutions  than  the  rest  of  Europe ; 
and,  industrious  and  enterprising  as  they  were, 
the  arts,  principally  music  arid  painting,  were 
early  and  passionately  cultivated  among  them. 
Motley,  in  his  "  History  of  the  Dutch  Republic,' 


60  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

gives  the  following  picture  :  "'  Thus  fifteen  ages 
have  passed  away  ;  and  in  the  place  of  a  horde  of 
savages,  living  amongst  swamps  and  thickets, 
swarm  three  millions  of  people,  the  most  indus- 
trious, the  most  prosperous,  perhaps  the  most 
intelligent,  under  the  sun.  Their  cattle,  grazing 
on  the  bottom  of  the  sea,  are  the  finest  in  Eu- 
rope ;  their  agricultural  products  of  more  ex- 
changeable value  than  if  Nature  had  made  their 
land  to  overflow  with  wine  and  oil.  Their  navi- 
gators are  the  boldest,  their  mercantile  marine 
the  most  powerful,  their  merchants  the  most 
enterprising  in  the  world.  Holland  and  Flan- 
ders, peopled  by  one  race,  vie  with  each  other  in 
the  pursuits  of  civilization.  The  Flemish  skill 
hi  mechanical  and  fine  arts  is  unrivalled.  Bel- 
gian musicians  delight  and  instruct  other  nations. 
Belgian  pencils  have,  for  a  century,  caused  the 
canvas  to  glow  with  colors  and  combinations 
never  before  seen." 

Although  French,  Italian,  German,  and  Eng- 
lish composers  at  first  contributed  equally  to  the 
perfection  of  that  art  called  counterpoint,  thus 
far  the  merit  of  first  producing  works  of  a  higher 
standard  has  been  attributed  to  the  Nether- 
landers.  The  school  of  music  of  the  Nether- 
landers  is  generally  divided  into  four  different 
epochs,  each  one  distinguished  by  that  composer, 
who  through  his  works,  and  his  influence  as  a 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  61 

teacher,  was  foremost  among  his  contemporaries. 
Thus,  we  have  the  epoch  of  Dufay,  that  of 
Okeghem,  that  of  Josquin  des  Pres,  and  that  of 
Willaert. 

The  oldest  masses,  written  in  contrapuntal 
style,  are  to  be  found  in  the  archives  of  the 
pope's  chapel  in  Rome.  Their  author  is  William 
Dufay,  who  is  said  to  have  been  born  at  Chimay 
in  Hainault.  Baini,  in  his  biography  of  Pales- 
trina,  says  that  Dufay  was  a  tenor  singer  in  the 
Sixtine  Chapel  in  Rome,  from  1380  to  1432,  and 
that  he  also  died  there.  Another  modern  writer, 
T.  W.  Arnold,  has,  however,  undertaken  to 
prove*  that  the  composer  Dufay  began  to  be 
celebrated  not  sooner  than  1436,  and  that  he 
died  in  his  own  country.  .  He  thinks  that  there 
must  have  been  two  musicians  of  the  name  of 
Dufay.  But,  until  this  is  cleared  up,  I  will  ad- 
mit the  older  date,  as  is  yet  generally  done. 
Judging  from  the  specimens  to  which  I  have 
'had  access,  of  Dufay's  works,  his  harmonies, 
though  correct,  sound  very  often  harsh  and 
strange ;  the  movement  of  the  voice-parts  is 
already  flowing  and  melodious.  The  dissonances 
are  employed  with  great  care  and  understand- 
ing ;  that  is  to  say,  on  the  unaccented  parts  of  the 
measures,  and  as  passing  notes.  Dufay  also  set 
secular  songs  in  contrapuntal  form.  His  works 

*  In  F.  Chrysander's  Jahrbiicher  fur  Musikalische  Wissenscbaft. 


62  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

are  remarkable  monuments  of  the  composition 
of  those  early  times. 

The  most  celebrated  contemporaries  of  Dufay, 
who  distinguished  themselves  in  the  same  man- 
ner of  writing,  were  Egidius  Binchois,  Vincent 
Faugues,  Eloy,  Brassart,  Antoine  Busnois. 
These  masters  all  belong  to  the  so-called  old 
school  of  the  Netherlands.  But  before  I  speak 
of  the  masters  of  the  new  school,  which  com- 
mences with  Okeghem,  and  their  works,  it  will 
be  necessary  to  explain  certain  technicalities  in 
form,  and,  at  the  same  time,  the  meaning  of 
some  technical  words  which  are  used  to  desig- 
nate those  forms.  An  approximative  understand- 
ing of  these  forms  and  technical  words  will,  in  a 
great  measure,  facilitate  a  close  pursuit  of  the 
history  of  musical  art  to  the  amateur,  while  it 
will  increase  his  enjoyment. 

I  have  already  had  occasion  to  use  the  expres- 
sions "polyphony"  and  "counterpoint."  Poly- 
phony means  the  union  of  many  parts  or  voices. 
The  old  writers  on  music  always  used  the  word  in 
this  sense.  The  modern  theorists  use  it,  however, 
in  a  different  sense.  They  apply  the  term  "  ho- 
mophony  "  to  that  kind  of  composition  in  which 
the  parts  move  in  similar  progression  and  rhythm ; 

O. 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  63 

and  the  term  "  polyphony "  to  such  compo- 
sitions as  fugues,  for  instance,  in  which  each 
of  the  parts,  distinguished  by  different  progres- 
sion and  rhythm,  expresses  more  individual  life 
and  melodious  flow,  although  subject  to  the  same 
laws  of  harmonious  succession.  The  old  contra- 
puntists, whose  only  aim  was  to  cultivate  this 
latter  form  of  writing,  understood  polyphony 
always  in  this  sense :  they  thought  it  superflu- 
ous to  mark  any  distinction.  This  leads  us  to 
the  word  "  counterpoint,"  which  signifies  point 
against  point ;  notes  being  very  often  called  points 
by  old  writers.  Counterpoint — the  terror  of 
ignorant  superficiality  and  the  object  of  pre- 
tended contempt —  has  a  manifold  signification. 
It  would  lead  me  too  far  to  give  an  explanation 
here  of  all  its  different  forms  in  use  in  musical 
writing.  I  will  limit  myself  to  the  following. 
In  its  broadest  sense,  to  study  counterpoint 
means  to  study  the  science  of  composition  in 
general.  In  a  more  limited  sense,  counterpoint 
signifies  to  invent  and  add  to  a  given  part,  called 
cantus  firmus,  one  or  more  parts  or  melodies. 
The  cantus  firmus  may  appear  as  upper,  lower, 
or  middle  part.  In  the  works  of  the  old  church 
composers,  until  the  seventeenth  century,  the 
cantus  firmus  is  always  assigned  to  the  voice 
called  tenor.  The  cantus  firmus  was,  then,  either 
a  Gregorian  chant  or  a  people's  song  ^folk-song)  : 


64 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 


of  this  latter  peculiarity,  I  shall  have  an  oppor- 
tunity to  speak  hereafter.  With  the  ancient 
church  composers,  counterpoint  meant  polyphony 
in  the  sense  I  have  explained  above. 

A  contrapuntal  form,  more  or  less  artificial,  is. 
the  canon.  It  is  a  composition  in  two  or  more 
parts,  in  which  the  parts,  commencing  one  after 
the  other,  imitate  each  other  strictly,  note  for 
note  :  every  following  part  is  entirely  governed 
by  the  construction  of  the  preceding  one.  Here 
is  a  canon  from  one  of  Dufay's  masses. 


10. 


•>*• 

•^ 

-•5^ 

£~\  • 

^  1          s?      \  \     \                 ;      I 

i  ^ 

f*          "^ 

I  s                    j    ^    ^                 — 

2j! 

ttl     !±&±22 

The  words  canon  and  fugue,  which  are  two 
very  distinct  forms  in  our  days,  were  then  used 
to  designate  the  same  tiling.  Canon,  as  derived 
from  the  Greek,  means,-  simply,  law  or  rule.  Itf- 
application  to  a  fixed  form  of  musical  composi 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  65 

don  probably  first  took  place  in  the  following 
manner.  The  industrious  and  ingenious  Flemish 
composers,  once  started  on  the  path  of  contra- 
puntal writing,  enriched  it  step  by  step,  and 
very  often  overloaded  it,  with  all  kinds  of  "  arti- 
ficialities :  "  so  much  so  that  these  artificialities 
became  proverbial ;  and  subsequent  writers  on 
music,  and  even  modern  historians,  have  told  us 
only  of  the  pedantic,  dry,  and  artificial  contra- 
puntal works  of  the  Netherlanders,  which  seem 
to  be  more  the  productions  of  arithmetical  calcu- 
lations than  those  of  poetical  imagination.  This 
is,  however,  not  entirely  the  case,  as  I  shall  have 
occasion  to  prove  in  speaking  of  the  different 
masters.  It  is  true  that  the  Flemish  composers, 
masters  of  polyphonic  writing,  could  not  always 
resist  the  temptation  of  making  use,  perhaps  a 
little  too  much  and  too  often,  of  their  profound 
knowledge  of  counterpoint.  So  we  find  that 
they  very  often  write  their  fugues,  intended  for 
many  voices,  on  one  staff,  accompanying  it  with 
short,  often  versified  devices,  to  indicate  that 
the  composition  is  not  to  be  sung  as  it  is  written, 
but  with  certain  modifications.  The  singers  of 
those  times,  being  always  learned  and  accom- 
plished composers,  no  doubt  delighted  in  those 
forms.  The  hint  given  by  the  device  was  called 
canon.  Tinctoris,  a  celebrated  theorist  of  the 
fifteenth  century,  saj^s,  "  A  canon  is  a  term 


66  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

which  indicates  the  meaning  of  the  composer  in 
a  certain  obscure  way."  And  another  writer, 
Hermann  Fink,  says,  "  The  canon  is  a  formula, 
by  which  the  unwritten  part  of  a  composition  is 
discovered  in  the  written  one."  Thus  the  word 
canon  has  been  applied  to  this  particular  form 
of  composition.  The  writing  of  canons  became 
such  a  mania  with  some  composers  of  these 
days,  that  out  of  pure  habit,  or  out  of  ignorance, 
some  even  wrote  devices  indicating  a  canon,  in 
which  no  person  could  discover  one.  We  find 
canons  in  augmentation,  in  diminution,  in  con- 
trary and  backward  motion,  &c.,  &c.,  for  two, 
three,  four,  and  up  to  thirty  parts.  Some  of 
them  could  not  be  executed  at  all. 

Nevertheless,  it  was  well,  that,  under  the  indus- 
trious hands  of  the  Flemish  composers,  the  art 
of  constructing  works  out  of  one  subject,  by 
means  of  consistent  imitation,  in  which  unity 
of  thought  and  logical  form  were  the  prevalent 
features,  should  have  become  established  as 
foundation  and  principle  in  all  works  of  a  high 
and  lasting  merit,  till  up  to  our  days.  Through 
this  they  were  fitted  to  become  the  teachers  of 
other  nations :  and,  when  their  task  was  fulfilled, 
they  retired,  leaving  the  field  to  the  Italians, 
who  accomplished,  in  a  more  ideal,  poetical 
sense,  what  the  Netherlander  so  successfully 
attempted,  and  in  many  respects  attained. 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  67 

John  Okeghem  (Ockenheim),  as  stated  before, 
was  the  principal  composer  and  teacher  of  the 
Flemish  school,  after  Dufay,  called  the  new 
school.  The  year  of  his  birth  and  his  birth- 
place are  not  known  with  any  certainty.  Fetis 
takes  the  year  1430,  Ambros  1415-20.  The 
town  of  Termond,  in  East  Flanders,  is  regarded 
by  some  musical  historians  as  his  birthplace. 
He  began  to  be  celebrated  about  1470.  In  1476, 
he  became  treasurer  at  the  Church  of  St.  Martin, 
at  Tours.  After  forty  years  of  service  under  the 
reign  of  three  French  kings,  he  retired  at  an  ad- 
vanced age,  and  died  in  1513,  at  Tours,  where 
he  probably  passed  the  last  years  of  his  life. 

Okeghem  was,  for  a  long  time,  considered  the 
patriarch  of  music,  the  inventor  of  the  canon, 
and,  in  general,  of  artificial  counterpoint.  But, 
as  I  have  already  shown,  a  great  and  important 
school  preceded  him.  Okeghem,  endowed  with 
great  talent,  faithfully  and  industriously  culti- 
vated the  forms  which  were  in  vogue  during  his 
time.  He  brought  the  canon,  however,  to  very 
high  perfection,  and  invented  many  of  those 
often-mentioned  contrapuntal  artificialities.  The 
voice  parts  in  his  compositions,  such  as  masses, 
motets,  and  chansons,  move  with  greater  freedom : 
the  harmonious  treatment  possesses  still  that 
strange  archaic  color ;  hoAvever,  there  is  already 
a  breath  of  tenderness  and  inward  feeling:  in 


68  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

some  portions  of  these  works.  Okeghem's  in- 
fluence as  a  teacher  was,  perhaps,  still  greater 
than  as  a  composer :  his  reputation  spread  far 
and  wide,  and  from  all  parts  of  France  and 
Belgium,  pupils  came  to  profit  by  his  teachings. 
The  most  distinguished  of  those  pupils,  who 
marked  the  next  great  epoch  of  music,  were 
Josquin  des  Pros,  Pierre  de  la  Rue,  Agricola, 
Brurnel,  Gaspard,  Loyset  Compere,  Vcrbonnet. 
The  art  of  writing  those  artificial  canons,  before 
mentioned,  wa.j  much  cultivated  at  this  epoch. 
The  most  celebrated  contemporaries  of  Okeg- 
hem  were  the  Netherlander,  John  Regis,  Fir- 
main  Caron,  Busnoys,  Jacob  Hobrecht,  who  is 
spoken  of  as  a  very  fine  composer  (Glarean 
says,  "  He  had  so  much  invention,  that  he  could 
compose  a  whole  mass  in  one  night  ").  Hobrecht 
was  also  the  teacher  in  music  of  the  celebrated 
Erasmus  of  Rotterdam.  Also  the  renowned 
theorists  and  writers  on  music,  John  Tinctoris, 
William  Guarnerie,  Bernardus  Hycaert,  lived  in 
Okeghem's  time.  ' 

I  have  already  mentioned  that  the  old  church 
composers  very  often  used  secular  songs  and 
folk-songs  as  cantus  firmus  in  their  masses  and 
motets,  besides  the  Gregorian  chant, —  a  practice 
which  was  in  use  until  the  seventeenth  century. 
It  has  been  proven  by  such  writers  as  Fotis, 
Coussemaker,  Nizard  and  Ambros,  that  this  was 


HISTORY   OF  MUSIC.  69 

a  custom  which  the  first  Flemish  contrapuntists 
received  from  their  neighbors,  the  French.  That 
musical  art  among  the  Netherlander  sprang  up 
at  once,  as  an  isolated  fact,  is,  of  course,  not  the 
case  ;  and  the  recently  discovered  specimens  of 
old  masses,  chansons,  and  other  pieces,  by  early 
French  composers,  has  shown  who  were  the 
masters  of  the  first  Flemish  composers.  But 
France,  under  the  misrule  of  weak  and  frivolous 
kings,  had  then  to  celebrate  tournaments,  and 
to  make  wars :  there  was  no  time  for  the  develop- 
ment and  cultivation  of  peaceful  arts.  The 
Low  Countries,  a  part  of  which  was  under  the 
government  of  the  dukes  of  Burgundy,  were 
thus  in  immediate  social  and  commercial  rela- 
tions with  France.  From  there  they  received, 
no  doubt,  the  first  impulse  to  the  cultivation  of 
musical  art,  and  with  it  the  habit  of  taking 
secular  melodies,  as  well  as  Gregorian  chants,  as 
tenor,  or  cantus  -firmus  in  their  works  for  the 
Church.  And,  as  the  social  and  political  situa- 
tion of  the  people  was  then  entirely  influenced 
by  the  Church,  the  boundaries  of  profane  and 
secular  music  were  less  distinctly  divided  than 
at  a  later  period.  Thus,  from  the  first  masses 
of  any  artistic  merit  by  William  Dufay,  which 
are  composed  over  the  melodies,  entitled,  "  Se 
la  face  ay  pale  "  "  Tant  je  me  deduisj'  "L'Jiomme 
arme"  &c.,  until  Palestrina,  we  find  masses  writ- 


70  niSTOEY  OF  MUSIC. 

ten  over  profane  chansons;  for  instance,  "  Adieu, 
men  amours"  " Malheur  me  bat"  " Des  rouges 
nez"  &c.,  &c.  But  the  most  used  as  tenor  was 
"  L'homme  arme"  Every  composer,  from  Dufay 
to  Palestrina  (and  even  Carissimi  himself),  has 
written  masses  on  this  melody,  over  and  ovei- 
again.  Every  thing  sanctioned  by  habit  being, 
in  the  course  of  time,  admitted  as  essential,  the 
composers  of  all  this  period  in  our  musical  art 
never  dreamed  of,  or  intended,  any  thing  con- 
trary to  the  dignity  of  the  Church.  Moreover, 
most  of  the  composers,  in  their  qualities  of 
singers  and  chapel  masters,  were  priests.  The 
masses  of  a  composer  were  then  distinguished 
by  the  title  of  the  melodies  of  the  tenor ;  and  it 
sounds  curious  to  read  the  mass  of  "  The  Red 
Noses,"  or  that  of  "  Farewell,  my  Love,"  that 
of  "The  Armed  Man,"  that  of  "He  has  a  pale 
Face,"  &c.,  &c.  Masses,  which  were  not  com- 
posed over  such  a  tenor,  were  simply  termed 
masses  sine  nomine.  Many  voices  were  loud 
against  this  custom,  and  condemned  it  as  a  pro- 
fanation of  divine  service :  others  defended  it. 
But  in  the  course  of  time,  probably  not  without 
being  much  abused  by  composers,  this  method 
of  writing  disappeared  entirely.  Through  more 
experience  and  richer  invention,  aided  by  con- 
tinual practice  in  the  difficult  art  of  counter- 
point, composers  could  rely  more  on  themselves, 


HISTORY   OF  MUSIC.  71 

and  stand  upon  their  own  feet,  needing  no  longer 
the  help  of  the  leading-strings  of  those  early 
and  naive  composers  for  the  church. 

The  greatest  composer  of  the  third  epoch  of 
the  Netheiianders,  and,  in  fact,  the  first  who 
created  works  which  still  possess  artistic  merit, 
was  Josquin  des  Pres  (Jodocus  Pratensis). 
Josquin  was  born,  probably,  in  1445,  and  proba- 
bly, also,  in  Conde*,  but  we  know  certainly  in 
Hainault.  A  singular  fate  persecuted  our 
greatest  masters :  we  very  often  do  not  know 
where  they  came  from.  Like  a  comet,  they 
appear,  shine,  and  disappear,  and  we  are  very 
often  uncertain  when  and  where.  Their  real 
existence,  their  real  characters,  are  too  often 
obscured  by  a  store  of  absurd,  untrue,  worth- 
less anecdotes  of  their  lives.  They  are  only 
too  often  represented  as  jesters  dealing  in  silly 
jokes,  which  are  recounted  with  minute  details, 
and  especially  if  they  possess  a  vein  of  humor, 
under  which  the  grandeur  of  their  characters, 
the  powerful  and  lofty  aspirations  of  their  minds, 
the  richness  and  sublimity  of  their  imaginations, 
are  buried.  Dry  theorists  and  superficial  critics, 
Avith  their  multiplication  and  division  tables  con- 
tinually at  hand,  cannot  understand  or  appre- 
ciate genius  when  it  does  not  accord  with  their 
figures.  So  it  was  with  Josquin,  the  first  real 
great  musical  genius  who  marks  an  era  in  our 


72  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

musical  art:  so  it  was  with  Mozart,  the  last 
great  universal  musical  genius  who  appeared. 
Even  Beethoven  and  Schubert  could  not  escape 
the  same  false  representations. 

But  to  return  to  Josquin.  After  he  had 
finished  his  studies  with  Okeghem,  he  must 
have  directed  his  steps  towards  Rome  ;  for  under 
the  pontificate  of  Sixtus  IV.,  from  1471  to  1484, 
we  find  him  as  a  singer  in  the  pope's  chapel. 
The  reason  which  prompted  him  to  leave  such  an 
honorable  position  is  not  known.  Was  it,  that,  like 
all  great  geniuses,  he  was  persecuted  by  envy 
and  jealousy  before  he  found  recognition?  After 
leaving  the  service  of  the  pope,  Josquin  des 
Pres  remained  for  some  time  in  Florence,  and 
also  in  Ferrara,  in  Italy,  where  at  last  he  found 
recognition,  and  where  his  genius,  in  continual 
contact  with  art  and  art-loving  men,  must  have 
received  the  deepest  impression.  Josquin  re- 
turned to  his  own  country,  and  about  1498  we 
meet  him  at  the  court  of  Ltmis  XII.  of  France. 
It  cannot  be  ascertained  for  how  long  a  time  he 
remained  at  the  court  of  France.  He  is  said  to 
have  been  in  the  service  of  the  Emperor  Maxi- 
milian, which  is  probably  an  error.  Josquin 
died  at  Condd,  Aug.  27,  1521. 

So  great  was  Josquin's  reputation  as  a  com- 
poser, while  living,  that  his  works  were  preferred 
to  those  of  all  others:  his  name  was  suflfi- 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  73 

cient  to  stamp  a  work  as  excellent.  A  motet 
by  Adrian  Willaert,  "  Verbum  bonum  est,"  for  six 
voices,  was  sung  for  a  long  time  in  the  Sixtine 
Chapel,  and  was  supposed  to  be  a  composition 
of  Josquin's.  Willaert,  who  happened  to 
come  to  Rome,  where  he  heard  the  motet  per- 
formed, of  course  claimed  it  as  his  work.  But 
the  prejudice  of  the  singers  was  so  great,  that 
they  refused  to  sing  the  motet  any  longer.  Cas- 
tiglione  also  relates  a  similar  fact :  "  A  motet, 
sung  before  the  Duchess  of  Urbino,  was  totally 
disregarded,  till  known  to  have  come  from  the 
pen  of  Josquin,  when  it  excited  universal  ex- 
stasy."  Does  not  this  remind  us  of  many  a 
similar  case  in  our  days  ?  For  want  of  sound 
and  just  appreciation  and  judgment  in  an  au- 
dience, fine  and  original  works  are  too  often 
only  indorsed  when  the  composer's  name  has 
already  acquired  the  prestige  of  a  certain  repu- 
tation among  connoisseurs.  Andrea  Adami  calls 
Josquin  the  brightest  luminary  in  the  heaven 
of  music,  from  whom  all  composers  who  suc- 
ceeded him  had  to  learn.  So  all  his  contempo- 
raries constantly  eulogized  his  learning  and  his 
genius.  Luther  was  very  fond  of  Josquin's 
music.  After  having  heard  one  of  his  motets 
performed,  he  exclaimed,  "  Josquin  is  a  master 
of  the  notes:  they  had  to  do  as  he  pleased, 
while  they  made  other  composers  do  as  they 
pleased." 


<4  Illy  TOBY  OF  MUSIC. 

Josquin,  like  every  great  composer  that  has 
appeared  until  our  days,  was  very  industrious, 
and  paid,  in  many  of  his  works,  a  tribute  to  the 
taste  of  his  time ;  but  he  created  many,  which, 
if  only  known,  will  still  excite  the  admiration  of 
the  connoisseur,  and  especially  his  motets  and 
psalms.  It  was  not  until  after  years  of  minuis 
polishing,  that  Josquin  allowed  his  works  to  be 
made  public,  although  he  mastered  all  the  intrica- 
cies of  the  most  artificial  contrapuntal  art  with 
the  greatest  ease  and  facility.  "  When  we  con- 
sider," says  Commer  very  justly,  "  that  JosqiuVs 
predecessors  were  merely  men  who  regarded  the 
artificial  construction  of  contrapuntal  phrases  as 
of  the  highest  consequence ;  when  we  reflect,  that, 
in  his  motets,  he  broke  through  earlier  bounda- 
ries, and  sought,  with  all  his  contrapuntal  art, 
to  give  full  signification  to  the  meaning  of  the 
words,  —  we  are  astonished  at  what  ho  accom- 
plished, and  forced  to  unite  with  his  contempo- 
raries in  their  admiration  for  him.  Josquin  not- 
only  stands  above  those  composers  who  lived 
before  and  with  him  ;  not  only  above  a  great 
number  of  those  who  succeeded  him,  —  but  his 
motets  are  such  master-works,  that,  well-per- 
formed, they  will  be  listened  to,  through  all 
time,  as  real  jewels  among  sacred  compositions." 

The  epoch  of  Josquiu  des  Pres  is  already 
rich  in  celebrated  composers ;  and  the  progress 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.        .  75 

of  music,  since  the  time  of  Dufay,  is  astonish- 
ing. Not  alone  composers,  but  theorists  of 
great  merit  and  profound  knowledge,  endeavored 
to  explain  and  systematize  the  methods  which 
led  on  Okeghem,  Josquin  des  Pros,  and  others, 
in  the  production  of  their  works,  and  in  their 
teachings.  The  most  celebrated  of  Josquin's 
pupils  were  Certon,  Clement  Jannequin,  Mail- 
lard,  Moulu,  Claudin  Sermisy,  Jean  Mouton, 
Adrien  Petit  (called  Coclicus),  Arcadelt,  Bour- 
gogne,  Nicolas  Gombert,  Jaquet  von  Berghem. 

The  invention  of  printing  notes  with  mova- 
ble metal  types,  in  the  year  1502,  was  of  the 
greatest  influence  on  the  development  of  musi- 
cal art.  The  inventor's  name  was  Ottavio  Pe- 
trucci  da  Ifossombrone,  in  Italy.  Through  Pe- 
trucci's  invention,  the  printing  of  musical  works 
became  cheaper  than  the  old  indistinct  prints 
with  wooden  types ;  and  the  enterprising  Petruc- 
ci  published,  in  quick  succession,  selections  of 
masses,  motets,  chansons,  and  other  works,  by 
the  favorite  composers  of  this  time.  Petrucci's 
invention  soon  found  its  way  to  other  cities  and 
countries.  German  printers,  especially,  availed 
themselves  of  it  very  soon,,  and  busily  printed 
and  reprinted,  for  the  music-loving  public, 
new  and  recognized  works  of  different  com- 
posers. 

Thus  we  see  musical  art,  after  centuries  of 


76  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

struggle  and  labor,  arrived  at  that  point  where 
composers  and  theorists,  aided  by  successful 
and  industrious  printers,  who  facilitated  the 
knowledge  of  their  works,  worked  together, 
hand  in  hand,  to  reveal  to  the  human  mind  the 
existence  of  the  not  less  wonderful  creations  of 
man's  imagination. 

With  the  exception  of  a  few  German  and 
French  composers,  Dutch  masters  had  the  uni- 
versal control  of  musical  matters  in  nearly  all  the 
European  chapels  and  church  choirs  of  any  conse- 
quence. In  the  next  and  fourth  period,  called 
the  epoch  of  Willaert,  the  school  of  the>  Nether- 
landers  reached  its  zenith ;  after  which,  other 
masters,  Italians,  stepped  in,  and  obtained  the 
supremacy  which  had  been  so  long  and  so  ably 
held  by  the  Netherlander. 

Adrian  Willaert,  born  at  Bruges,  in  Flanders, 
in  the  year  1490,  is  said  to  have  been  a  pupil  of 
Jean  Mouton,  possibly,  also,  of  Josquin  des  Pres 
himself.  He  first  studied  law  at  the  University 
of  Paris,  which,  however,  he  soon  abandoned  for 
the  study  of  music.  As  a  young  man  of  twenty- 
six,  he  had  already  made  himself  a  name  with 
his  compositions  in  his  own  country.  In  1518, 
he  went  to  Rome.  But  it  seems  he  was  not  suc- 
cessful in  endeavoring  to  procure  himself  a  posi- 
tion in  Rome :  he  went,  therefore,  to  try  his 
luck  in  Venice.  He  succeeded  so  well  there, 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  77 

that,  in  1527,  he  had  already  obtained  the  posi- 
tion of  a  maestro  in  the  Church  of  St.  Marc,  & 
position  which  was  considered  in  Venice  that  of 
a  musical  dignitary.  Willaert's  influence,  as  a 
composer  and  teacher  of  musical  science  and  art, 
was  great  and  beneficial.  He  was  the  founder 
of  the  celebrated  Venetian  school  of  music,  from 
which  sprang  so  many  distinguished  composers, 
theorists,  and  singers.  Willaert  is  also  the 
father  of  the  madrigal,  a  form  of  which  I  will 
speak  hereafter.  He  introduced  the  double 
chorus  in  the  antiphonal  form.  Willaert  died 
the  7th  of  December,  1562.  The  .  most  cele- 
brated of  his  pupils  were  Cyprian  de  Rore  (who 
was  his  successor,  and  to  whom  the  Italians  gave 
the  title  of  "II  divino),"  whose  works  may  be 
counted  as  of  the  best  among  those  of  his  con- 
temporaries ;  and  also  the  distinguished  theo- 
rist Zarlino,  Constanzo  Porta,  Nicolo  Vincento, 
Delia  Viola.  Flemish  masters,  ,who  lived  and 
distinguished  themselves  at  this  fourth  and  last 
epoch  of  the  Netherlanders,  were  Christian  and 
Sebastian  Hollander,  Thomas  Crequillon,  Jaco- 
bus de  Keiie,  Orlandus  Lassus,  Clemens  non 
Papa,  Matthieu  Le  Maistre,  Andreas  Pevernage, 
Jacobus  Vaet,  Coradius  Verdonk,  Hubertus  Wai- 
rant,  and  many  others. 

Arrived  at  the  turning-point  of  musical  cul- 
ture among  the  Netherlanders,  I  will  next  pro- 


T8  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

ceed  to  pass  in  brief  review  the  labors  of  the 
other  European  nations  in  the  field  of  musical 
composition  during  all  this  period. 

From  the  earliest  times,  music,  vocal  and  in- 
strumental, was  pursued  with  great  application 
and  talent  in  England  ;  and,  in  the  development 
of  harmony  and  counterpoint,  it  had  an  equal 
share  with  other  European  nations.  An  old 
author,  Tinctoris,  and  with  him  many  ancient 
and  modern  writers,  are  even  inclined  to  attribute 
to  the  English  the  honor  of  being  the  inventors 
of  counterpoint ;  and  Dunstable,  about  1420, 
was,  in  his  time,  considered  the  foremost  among 
English  composers.  Though  their  neighbors,  the 
French  and  Dutch  musicians,  became  masters 
of  the  situation,  the  English  also  made  consider- 
able progress  in  that  art ;  and  composers  like 
Robert  Fairfax,  John  Digon,  John  Shepard, 
John  Marbeck,  John  Tavern,  John  Parsons, 
Christopher  Tye,  Robert  White,  and  many 
others,  contributed  not  a  little  towards  the  most 
brilliant  epoch  of  musical  art  in  England,  headed 
by  Thomas  Tallis,  his  great  pupil  Bird,  Morley 
(a  pupil  of  Bird),  Dowland,  Weelkes,  John  Bull. 
John  Wilbye,  Orlando  Gibbons,  &c.  Though 
many  a  fine  motet  and  anthem  owes  its  origin  to 
these  composers,  their  madrigals  are  yet  more 
interesting,  more  original,  more  beautiful,  and 
more  fresh.  The  madrigal  was  then  the  favorite 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  79 

form  of  English,  composers.  Besides  the  compo- 
sitions which  belong  to,  and  also  make  an  essen- 
tial part  of,  the  service  of  the  church,  such  as 
masses,  motets,  psalms,  hymns,  &c.,  composers, 
from  the  earliest  dates  at  which  music  was  writ- 
ten in  different  parts,  were  very  industrious  in 
composing  to  secular  words,  melodies  and  part 
songs  for  the  wants  of  musical  amateurs.  And  in 
different  countries,  according  to  the  peculiarities 
of  the  people,  these  songs,  the  deeper  expression 
of  individual  life,  took  different  forms  in  melo- 
dious construction  as  well  as  in  harmonious  treat- 
ment. Thus  in  France  we  find  the  chanson,  in 
Germany  the  Lied,  in  England  the  song  and  the 
glee,  in  Italy  thefrottole,  the  villote,  the  canzonet. 
I  will  here  only  treat  of  the  madrigal. 

"  Madrigal  (Webster's  definition)  is  a  word 
derived  from  mandra,  or  mandria,  a  flock,  a 
sheep-fold,  a  herd  of  cattle :  hence  madrigal, 
originally  a  pastoral  song ;  a  little,  amorous 
poem,  containing  some  tender  and  delicate, 
though  simple  thought."  We  already  know  that 
composers  have  selected  for  their  masses,  very 
often,  Gregorian  chants  or  secular  melodies  for 
tenor.  In  the  madrigal,  the  composition  rested 
upon  original  invention,  thus  allowing  more 
variety  in  form  and  contrapuntal  treatment.  In 
the  madrigal,  the  composer's  endeavor  was  to 
express,  through  adequate  music,  the  meaning 


80  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

of  the  poem :  he  followed  closely,  with  appro- 
priate motives,  the  sentiment  of  the  different 
•verses.  Strict  and  elaborate  canons  and  fugues 
were  thus  out  of  place  in  the  madrigal ;  and, 
though  seemingly  simple  in  its  construction,  the 
composer  found  ample  opportunity  to  display 
his  mastery  in  contrapuntal  writing.  Great 
variety  in  rhythm,  poetical  expression,  charac- 
teristic melodies,  new  and  striking  harmonies, 
were  considered  as  the  necessary  qualities  of 
the  madrigal.  It  was  generally  set  for  three,  four, 
five,  six,  and  even  more  parts,  though  writing 
in  five  parts  seems  to  have  been  most  in  favor 
and  use.  I  have  already  mentioned  that  Adrian 
Willaert  is  considered,  if  not  as  its  inventor,  at 
any  rate,  as  the  composer  who  gave  it  its  first 
artistic  form.  The  madrigal  may  be  considered 
as  the  highest  form  of  chamber-music  in  those 
days,  written  and  composed  for  the  refined  and 
appreciative  amateurs  of  the  best  social  circles, 
principally  in  Venice  and  Rome.  All  composers 
of  any  name  produced  works  in  this  favorite 
form:  among  others,  I  will  mention,  besides 
Willaert,  Cyprian  de  Rore,  Constanzo  Porta, 
Constanzo  Festa,  Verdelot,  Arcadelt,  Palestrina, 
Orlandus  Lassus,  Orazio  Vecchi,  the  Prince  of 
Venossa,  and  Luca  Marenzio,  the  madrigalist 
par  excellence. 

The  madrigal,  after  its  first  introduction  from 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  81 

Italy  into  England,  about  1583,  flourished  es- 
pecially there  ;  and  such  composers  as  Dowland, 
Weelkes,  Morley,  Cobbold,  Farmer,  and  many 
others,  have  created  works,  which,  through  their 
freshness  and  exquisite  charm  in  melodious, 
harmonic,  and  contrapuntal  treatment,  will, 
when  well  performed,  still  receive  the  admira- 
tion of  musicians  and  amateurs.  "  The  charm- 
ing, and,  in  a  certain  sense,  unequalled  madrigals 
of  these  masters  differ  essentially  from  those  of 
the  Italians  and  Netherlander.  It  is  well 
known,  that  the  British  Islands  (England,  Ire- 
land, and  Scotland)  possess  a  large  number  of 
folk-songs  of  the  most  wonderful  beauty.  The 
madrigals  are  either  founded  on  these  folk-songs, 
or,  in  melodic  invention,  they  imitate  them 
throughout ;  while  the  masterly  texture  of  the 
voice-parts  just  touches  on  the  boundaries  of 
that  hair-line  where  melody  still  remains  true 
to  itself,  and  yet  is  moved  by  the  rich  life  of 
polyphony.  There  can  be  nothing  more  grace- 
ful than  a  few  of  the  pieces  of  Dowland  and 
Morley.  They  are  at  once  naively  folk-like 
and  simple,  yet  really  courteous.  It  is  society 
music  in  the  best  sense,  and  music  which  may 
thank  society  of  the  times  of  Elizabeth  — 
society  that  was  rich  in  strong  and  handsome 
women,  and  chivalric,  pure  men  —  for  its  rise 
and  development.  It  is,  indeed,  one  of  the 


82  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

most  pleasing  flowers  of  that  Elizabethan 
soil."  * 

In  4601,  Thomas  Morley  published  a  selec- 
tion of  madrigals,  to  which  twenty  different 
composers  contributed.  The  collection  is  called 
the  "  Triumph  of  Oriana :  "  the  motto  of  each 
madrigal  was  "  Long  live  fair  Oriana ;"  and,  in  the 
fair  Oriana,  Queen  Elizabeth  was  honored. 

It  would  lead  me  too  far  to  speak  of  the  dif- 
ferent changes  the  madrigal  was  subject  to  hi 
the  course  of  time.  In  my  account  of  the  musi- 
cal drama,  —  the  opera  and  the  oratorio,  —  how- 
ever, we  shall  meet  it  again.  Suffice  it  here  to 
say,  that,  in  its  musical  construction,  it  greatly 
influenced  the  forms  of  other  compositions,  and 
especially  of  the  motet. 

In  Germany,  the  progress  of  musical  develop- 
ment, so  peculiar  and  natural  to  its  people,  was 
pursued  steadfastly  and  consistently  from  its 
earliest  state,  until  it  became,  in  our  modern 
times,  the  head  of  a  school.  Of  the  distinguished 
German  composers,  who  were  perfect  masters 
of  all  the  different  forms  of  counterpoint,  and 
who  created  works  unsurpassed  by  any  of  the 
Dutch  composers,  I  must  mention  Henry  Fink, 
who  flourished  about  1480  ;  Henry  Isaac  (born 
about  1440),  called  by  the  Italians  Arrigo 
Tedesco,  one  of  the  greatest  among  composers. 

*  Ambroa  :  Gcschichtc  dcr  Musik 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  83 

His  masses,  motets,  and  German  part-songs  may 
be  counted  among  the  finest  works  produced  at 
this  time.  Other  renowned  composers  were 
Stephen  Mahu,  Ldfenz  Lemlin,  Sixt  Dietrich, 
Arnold  von  Brack,  Ludwig  Senfle,  a  pupil  of 
Isaac,  and,  perhaps,  no  less  a  great  composer 
than  his  master  Isaac.  Luther  was  especially 
fond  of  Senfle's  motets.  Besides  masses  and 
motets,  he  has  composed  admirable  part-songs 
to  German  words.  Of  other  German  compo- 
sers, I  shall  speak  more  elaborately  in  the  lec- 
ture on  the  Oratorio  ;  and  especially  of  those 
who  played  so  conspicuous  a  part  at  the  time  of 
the  Reformation,  and  who  adorned  the  rising 
Protestant  (Lutheran)  Church  with  many  noble 
sacred  hymns,  which  were  the  germs  of  a  new 
and  vigorous  form  of  Protestant  church-music. 
Spain  furnished,  in  the  sixteenth  century,  some 
excellent  singers  and  composers  to  the  pope's 
chapel  in  Rome ;  and,  to  judge  from  the  works 
of  these  masters,  one  cannot  help  wondering 
that  musical  culture  of  a  higher  order,  with  few 
and  rare  exceptions,  was,  at  a  later  period,  so 
entirely  neglected  by  a  nation  which  has  given 
proof  of  so  much,  so  exquisite,  so  truly  poetic, 
talent  for  that  art.  We  may  consider  Cristofano 
Morales  as  the  representative  of  Spanish  com- 
posers. This  great  master  was  born  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  sixteenth  century.  Irt  1540,  under 


84  IllSTOUY  OF  MUSIC. 

Pope  Paul  III.,  he  was  admitted  as  a  singer  in 
the  Sixtiue  Chapel.  Morales  points  already,  in 
many  of  his  works,  to  the  noble  and  pure  church 
style  of  Palestrina.  Morales  was  an  upright, 
thorough,  and  honest  artist.  His  serious  and 
noble  character,  true  to  nis  Spanish  nationality, 
can  be  distinguished  in  the  following  lines,  which 
form  a  part  of  his  preface  to  a  book  of  masses : 
"  I  despise,"  he  says,  "all  superficial,  frivolous 
music,  and  never  occupied  myself  with  it.  The 
object  of  music  is  to  strengthen  and  ennoble  the 
soul.  If  it  does  else  save  honor  God,  and  illus- 
trate the  thoughts  and  feelings  of  great  men,  it 
entirely  misses  its  aim.  But  what  shall  I  say 
of  those  men,  who,  gifted  with  divine  power  of 
creating  music,  misuse  their  power  in  a  con- 
temptible manner  ?  There  are  such  men,  how- 
ever, on  whose  ingratitude  it  is  impossible  to  look 
without  indignation.  And  their  works  alone 
are  those  that  deserve  the  epithets,  enervating, 
demoralizing.  But,  should  any  one  pretend  to 
say  that  all  music  is  a  frivolous  luxury,  he  may 
rest  assured  that  the  frivolity,  and  other  defects 
besides,  are  to  be  looked  for  in  his  own  breast, 
and  not  in  the  nature  of  musicl"  Among  other 
Spanish  composers,  I  will  mention  Escobedo, 
Scribano,  the  two  Guerros,  Soto,  Ortiz,  and,  be- 
fore all,  the  admirable  Vittoria. 

It  is  difficult  to  draw  a  line  of  demarcation 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  85 

between  the  styles  of  French  and  Flemish  com- 
posers of  this  time.  The  southern  provinces  of 
the  LOAV  Countries  being  populated  by  a  people 
entirely  of  the  same  race  as  the  French,  the  only 
difference  was  that  of  residence  in  another  coun- 
try. Until  our  days,  many  of  the  Dutch  com- 
posers were  even  classified  with  the  French: 
from  this  we  find  the  school  of  the  Netherland- 
ers,  also  often  called  G-allo-Belgian,  Only  one 
of  the  French  masters  (and  he  is  too  often  called 
a  Flemish  composer)  will  occupy  our  attention 
here,  who,  through  his  influence  as  the  founder 

o 

of  the  great  Roman  school  of  music,  and,  as  such, 
the  master  of  Palestrina,  and  also  through  his 
charming  compositions,  prepared  the  epoch  in 
which  real  Catholic  church  music  reached  its 
purest  and  most  idealistic  forms  ;  and  that  artist 
•was  Claude  Cf-oudimeL  Goudiinel  was  born  at 
Vaison,  near  Avignon,  at  the  beginning  of  the 
sixteenth  century  ;  and,  on  suspicion  of  being  a 
Huguenot,  the  24th  of  August,  1572,  rn  that 
terrible  night  of  the  massacre  of  French  Protest- 
ants, called  St.  Bartholomew's  Night,  he  was 
killed  at  Lyons,  and  his  corpse  thrown  into  the 
Rhone.  Goudimel  has  written  masses  and  mo- 
tets of  exquisite  te  iderness,  of  rare  charm,  of  re- 
markable clearness  in  form,  —  qualities  of  which 
his  great  pupil,  Palestrina,  made  so  effective  a 
use.  Of  his  arrangement  of  the  Psalms  of  David, 


86  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

translated  into  French  by  Clement  Marot  and 
Theodore  de  Beze,  I  shall  speak  in  my  lecture  on 
the  Oratorio.  The  distinguished  composers, 
Animuccia,  Bettini,  Nanino,  Merlo,  called  Delia 
Viola,  were,  besides  Palestrina,  pupils  of  Goudi- 
mel.  Other  French  composers  at  this  time  were 
Pierre  Certon,  Clement  Jannequin,  Phinot, 
Claude  le  Jeune,  Carpentras. 

The  Italians,  under  the  guidance  of  such  ex- 
cellent composers  and  teachers  as  the  Nether- 
landers,  made  themselves  gradually  masters  of 
the  difficult  art  of  counterpoint.  It  was  not  in 
the  nature  of  the  Italians  to  express  themselves 
in  such  complicated  forms  as  counterpoint  pre- 
sents. Counterpoint,  as  I  have  already  proved, 
is  the  production  of  the  Northern  German  mind  : 
and,  like  the  Gothic  style  of  architecture,  each 
part  of  the  complicated  form  is  only  understood 
in  connection  with  the  whole  composition  ;  and, 
though  every  one  of  these  parts  is  brought  to 
the  greatest  individual  perfection,  they  all  con- 
cur in  the  expression  of  one  great  thought,  of 
one  great  idea.  Like  all  Gothic  art,  this  form 
reflects,  in  its  variety  of  rhythm,  in  its  richness 
of  harmony,  and  its  finish  and  perfection  of 
workmanship,  the  social  and  political  situation 
of  the  Northern  nations  in  the  middle  Ages,  till 
up  to  the  "  Renaissance,"  and,  at  the  same  time, 
the  drearav  and  fanciful  imagination  of  these 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  87 

nations.  Not  outward,  like  the  Italian,  but 
within  itself,  rests  the  ideal  of  the  German  artist  i 
and,  in  his  endeavor  to  give  expression  to  his 
deep  and  soul-felt  thoughts,  he  not  seldom 
creates  works  overladen  with  contrapuntal 
details,  obscured  by  richness  of  harmony,  often 
incomprehensible  for  want  of  clear,  formal  con- 
struction, and  which  only  such  gigantic  minds 
as  J.  S.  Bach  and  Beethoven  could  triumphant- 
ly overcome.  In  Italy,  pure  Gothic  architecture 
and  essentially  Gothic  arts  never  could  take 
root.  Surrounded  by  the  classic  remains  of  old 
Greek  and  Roman  art,  influenced  by  the  beauti- 
ful, serene,  and  warm  climate,  the  peculiarity 
of  their  nature  is  more  inclined  to  outward  ex- 
pression in  clear,  simple,  but  grandiose  forms. 
There  is  a  repose  and  a  quieting  influence  in 
their  whole  art,  a  reflex  of  the  lovely  lines,  the 
beautiful  sky,  which  overhangs  the  charming 

*/   '  o  o 

Italian  landscape.  The  whole  existence  of  the 
Italians  is  an  outward  one,  which,  at  the  same 
time,  points  to  superficiality,  to  empty  and  cold 
formalism.  And  this  is  not  so  perceivable  in  any 
branch  of  their  art  as  in  music.  Hence  the  dis- 
sonance between  German  and  Italian  art.  When 
these  two  characteristic  qualities,  which  distin- 
guish the  Italian  from  the  German  mind,  are 
found  combined,  though  very  rarely,  in  such 
individualities  as  Palestrina,  Orlandus  Lassus, 


88  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

Handel,  and  Mozart,  then  art  reaches  that  point 
of  universal  excellence  which  makes  its  works 
the  sesthetical  expression  of  no  single  nationality, 
of  no  single  individuality,  but  of  the  spirit  of 
the  whole  age ;  and  they  are  accepted  as  last- 
ing and  ideal  forms  of  artistic  enjoyment  for  all 
men  and  for  all  times,  and  as  lofty  monuments 
of  man's  mind  and  imagination,  exceptionally 
gifted  by  the  fructifying  and  creative  finger  of 
God. 

Constanzo  Festa  is  considered  as  the  first 
Italian  composer  who  became  a  thorough  master 
in  counterpoint.  He  was  admitted  as  a  singer 
in  the  Sixtine  Chapel  in  1517,  and  died  1245, 
much  beloved,  and  much  esteemed  as  a  composer 
during  his  life.  Though  Festa's  works  every- 
where give  proof  of  his  having  been  a  pupil  of 
the  school  of  the  Netherlanders,  yet  they 
already  display  much  of  that  tenderness,  purity, 
and  chaste  simplicity,  which  distinguished  the 
works  of  the  great  Italian  composers  who  fol- 
lowed him.  Baini  asserts  that  Palestrina  studied 
Festa's  works  closely ;  nay,  he  considers  Festa  as 
the  immediate  predecessor,  the  model  composer, 
in  that  noble  style  of  church  music  which  stamps 
the  works  of  Palestrina  as  unique  in  form  an;l 
idea. 

Giovanni  Pierluigi,  called  Palestrina  from  the 
name  of  his  birthplace,  was  born,  according  to 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  89 

Baini,  his  biographer,  in  the  year  1524.  Kand- 
ler,  the  German  translator  of  Baini's  work,  on 
the  strength  of  an  inscription  on  an  old  portrait 
of  Palestrina  which  exists  in  the  archives  of  the 
singers  in  the  Sixtine  Chapel,  was  inclined  to 
take  1514  as  the  year  of  his  birth.  It  has  been 
proved  quite  recently,  however,  that  KUndler 
was  right  in  fixing  1514.  E.  Schelle,  on  a  visit 
to  Rome,  had  the  good  fortune  to  examine  the 
family  papers  and  other  documents  formerly 
belonging  to  our  master,  which  were  discovered 

O        O 

by  Cicerchio,  a  pupil  of  Baini,  among  the 
archives  of  the  town  of  Palestrina,  near  Rome. 
Baini,  so  enthusiastic  in  his  admiration  of  Pales- 
trina, so  exclusive  in  his  favorable  judgment  of 
his  hero's  works  whenever  he  has  to  reward  the 
merit  of  others  also,  never  took  the  trouble  of 
journeying  to  the  near  birthplace  of  the  master. 
He  preferred  to  give  us  very  learned  and  elabo- 
rate speculations,  founded  on  anecdotes  and 
bulls  of  the  pope,  &c.,  and  to  admit  the  wrong 
date,  when,  by  a  half-a-day's  journey,  he  would 
have  been  able  to  state  the  right  one.  Schelle 
also  tells  us  that  Palestrina's  family-name  was 
Sante ;  that  the  master's  parents,  though  not 
rich,  were  yet  well  off,  and  able  to  give  their 
son  good  instruction.  It  is  very  touching]}' 
stated,  in  some  books,  that  Palestrina,  as  a  pooi 
peasant-boy,  came  to  Rome ;  that  his  great 


90  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

musical  talent  was  then  discovered ;  and  that; 
through  all  kinds  of  privations  and  adventures, 
he  became  a  celebrated  composer.  It  is,  how- 
ever, as  I  have  stated  before,  not  true.  Pales- 
trina  received  his  first  musical  instruction  in  his 
own  city,  where  he  was  also  for  some  time 
organftt  at  the  cathedral.  He  afterwards  went 
to  Rome,  where  he  obtained  his  first  engage- 
ment as  a  teacher  of  the  choir-boys  of  St. 
Peter's,  in  the  Vatican,  in  the  year  1551,  and  was 
subsequently  chapel-master  there.  In  1554,  he 
published  his  first  book  of  masses  for  four  and  five 
parts,  and  was,  in  1555,  admitted  in  the  Sixtine 
Chapel ;  but,  as  he  was  married,  Pope  Paul  IV., 
who  considered  it  contrary  to  the  rule  of  hi3 
ohapel,  which  excludes  laymen,  had  him  dis- 
missed. But  in  latter  years,  his  reputation  as  a 
composer  of  church  music  having  become  great, 
Pope  Pius  IV.,  wishing  to  have  him  back, 
created,  expressly  for  him,  the  position  of 
u  Composer  to  the  pope's  chapel,"  a  distinction, 
which,  after  Palestrina's  death,  was  conferred 
only  on  one  more  composer,  Felix  Anerio. 
Palestrina  died  in  the  year  15', '  1. 

Palestrina,  like  every  great  composer,  closely 
and  diligently  studied  the  works  of  his  predeces- 
sors. Formed  in  that  great  school  of  the 
Netherlanders,  he  faithfully  followed  its  princi- 
ples and  traditions;  and  in  many  of  his  worka 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  V)l 

he  paid  a  tribute  to  that  school.  Though  very 
often  considered  as  the  reformer  of  true  church 
music,  it  was  not  in  outward  formal  endeavors 
that  he  perfected  the  organism  of  his  art,  but 
by  ennobling,  enriching,  purifying  its  inward 
contents ;  by  idealizing,  in  the  sense  of  the 
Catholic  Church,  its  mystic  religious  life.  Pales- 
trina's  genius,  so  rich,  so  fruitful,  attained  its 
truest  and  grandest  expression  in  the  musical 
embodiment  of  the  rites  of  his  Church.  Per- 
haps more  than  any  other  composer,  he  found 
those  sympathetic  yet  heavenly-pure  touches, 
which  enabled  him  to  lend  adequate  musical 
expression  to  that  rich  liturgy,  so  dear  to  the 
Catholic  Christian.  In  Palestrina's  works, 
Catholic  church  music  found  its  greatest  and 
purest  revelation  :  they  mark  the  culminating 
point,  and  at  the  same  time,  I  may  ^ay,  the 
close,  of  a  great  and  unique  epoch  in  our  musical 
art. 

Palestrina  founded  his  style,  which  was  called 
after  him  the  Palestrina  style,  upon  the  study 
of  Gregorian  chant  in  its  purest  meaning :  from 
that  source  he  drew  his  wonderful  inspiration. 
No  master  studied  Gregorian  chant  more  deeply 
than  Palestrina  :  no  one,  before  or  after,  knew 
better  how  to  use  it  with  more  artistic  variety 
and  success.  Palestrina  remained  true,  all  his' 
life,  to  the  traditions  of  the  system  of  the  eccle- 


92  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

siastical  modes.  He  was  a  stranger  to  the  nei 
vous  striving  of  some  of  his  contemporaries  foi 
new  and  striking  harmonious  means  with  which 
to  enrich  their  works,  and  which  resulted, 
finally,  in  the  overthrow  of  the  system  of  the 
ecclesiastical  keys,  and  the  substitution  of  our 
modern  tonalities  (major  and  minor  keys) 
instead,  which  rest  upon  the  tonic  and  domi- 
nant. 

Palestrina  had  the  good  fortune,  while  yet 
living,  to  see  his  merit  recognized.  He  was  very 
industrious  all  his  life,  and  has  composed  a  vast 
number  of  works. 

I  have  yet  to  mention  one  great  event  in 
Palestrina's  life.  Nearly  all  writers  on  the  his- 
tory of  music  make  it  of  great  importance, 
embellishing  it,  according  to  the  force  of  their 
own  imaginations,  with  more  or  less  romantic 
colors.  It  is  this  :  At  the  Council  of  Trent,  in 
the  year  1562,  among  other  reforms  which  con- 
cerned the  service  of  the  Catholic  Church  and 
its  government,  the  question  of  a  reform  of 
church  music  was  also  agitated.  We  are 
told  that  the  reverend  fathers,  at  this 
time,  were  very  much  incensed  about  the  fri- 
volity with  which  composers  introduced  profane 
melodies  as  the  fundamental  theme,  the  tenor, 
in  their  masses  and  other  compositions,  and  the 
contrapuntal  artificialities  with  which  works 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  93 

destined  for  the  edification  of  church  service 
were  overloaded,  —  so  much  so,  that  the  words 
could  not  be  understood  ;  and  that,  but  for  the 
genius  of  Palestrina,  figurated  or  contrapuntal 
music  would  have  been  banished  from  the 
Catholic  Church  for  all  times.  Pope  Pius  IV., 
before  taking  sweeping  measures,  appointed  a 
committee  of  cardinals,  and  singers  of  his  chapel, 
to  examine  the  subject,  and  to  recommend 
means  for  a  necessary  reform.  Palestrina,  al- 
ready known  by  some  exquisite  works,  at  the 
request  of  the  committee  produced  three  masses, 
of  which  one,  in  six  parts,  pleased  throughout, 
and  received  the  admiration  of  every  one.  It 
is  the  celebrated  " Missa  Papce  Marcelli"  which 
Palestrina  dedicated,  in  grateful  remembrance,  to 
his  former  protector,  the  Pope  Marcellus  II. 
Since  this  time,  we  are  accustomed  to  see  Pales- 
trina called  the  Saviour  of  church  music. 

Of  course  this  mass  is  a  wonderful  work 
throughout ;  but  as  to  that  simplicity  in  contra- 
puntal treatment,  which,  according  to  most  writ- 
ers on  the  subject,  makes  this  mass  so  different 
from  the  works  of  other  composers  of  this  time, 
I  could  never  discover  it.  Artificial  contra 
puntal  form  predominates  from  the  first  number 
"Kyrie  eleison,"  —  which  is  built  upon  a  canon, 
—  to  the  end.  Baini,  the  most  prolific  source 
of  these  reports,  thinks  it,  of  course,  necessary 


94  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

for  the  glory  of  his  hero  to  raise  him,  Atlas- 
like,  above  all  other  composers  ;  and,  to  dissipate 
all  doubts,  he  discourages  students,  through 
unjust  and  severe  judgment,  from  referring  to 
the  master-works  of  Palestrina's  predecessors 
and  contemporaries.  That  the  genius  of  Pales- 
trina  created  a  work  in  the  old  traditional  forms, 
which,  through  its  great  beauties,  disarmed  the 
enemies  of  counterpoint,  —  where,  perhaps,  lies 
the  whole  question  of  a  reform  in  church  music, 
—  shows  the  invariable  truth  which  rests  at  the 
foundation  of  the  art-principle  of  those  Nether- 
landers,  —  an  art-principle,  the  very  germ  of  our 
modern  music,  and  one  that  will  hold  good  for 
all  time.  But  to  admit,  as  Baini  would  have 
us,  that,  because  Palestrina  is  so  great,  with  very 
few  exceptions  the  works  of  other  composers  who 
lived  before  and  with  him  are  inferior  produc- 
tions, full  of  dry,  contrapuntal  artificialities, 
without  meaning,  without  invention,  &c.,  &c., 
is  simply  a  great  injustice  to  those  worthy  mas- 
ters. Any  one,  who,  without  prejudice,  knows* 
how  to  read,  and  has  the  faculty  of  correctly 
judging  what  he  hears,  will  soon  be  convinced 
of  the  narrowness  of  the  views  and  judgments 
of  Baini,  Burney,  and  others,  in  regard  to  most, 
of  the  works,  principally  the  beautiful  motets,  of 
such  masters  as  Josquin  des  Press,  Arcadelt, 
Clemens  non  Papa,  Morales,  Cyprian  de  Rore, 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  95 

Orlando  cli  Lasso,  Willaert,  Festa,  and  a  host  of 
others.  Though  full  of  the  highest  admiration 
for  the  great  and  exceptional  genius  of  Pales- 
trina,  yet  this  does  not  exclude  my  apprecia- 
tion, my  veieration,  for  the  noble  works  of  the 
Flemish,  German,  and  French  composers  of  this 
remarkable  ep^ch  in  our  musical  art.  And,  feel- 
ing the  beauties  of  the  works  of  these  masters, 
I  never  could  understand  yet  how  church  music 
then  needed  a  saviour.  Can  it  be,  that  then,  as  in 
our  own  days,  singers  and  organists  ignored  the 
noble  works  of  tne  truly  great  and  inspired 
masters,  and  substituted,  in  their  stead,  the  shal- 
low, insipid,  frivolous  productions  of  merce- 
nary art  ?  for,  in  musical  art,  it  is  unfortunately 
only  too  often  the  case,  that  superficial  knowl- 
edge and  deficient  judgment  and  talent  usurp 
the  claims  of  real  merit,  real  knowledge,  real 
talent. 

The  genius  of  the  Netherlander,  which,  for 
nearly  two  centuries,  stood  at  the  head  of  musi- 
cal culture  in  Europe,  at  the  close  of  its  mission 
seemed  once  more  to  concentrate  all  its  power, 
all  its  peculiarity,  all  its  fertility,  on  one  master, 
the  greatest  of  all  his  nation,  ii  ferior  to  none  of 
his  contemporaries,  -  -  Orlandut,  Lassus,  or  Or- 
lando di  Lasso. 

Orlandus  Lassus  was  born  at  Mous,  in  Hai- 
uault,  in  1520.  In  his  youth,  he  \vas  a  choir-boy 


96  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

at  the  St.  Nicolas  Cathedral,  in  his  native  city, 
and,  if  the  anecdote  be  truly  told,  was  kid- 
napped not  less  than  three  times  on  account  of 
his  fine  voice.  At  the  age  of  twelve  years,  he 
accompanied  Ferdinand  de  Gonsaga  to  Milan. 
He  afterwards  went  to  Rome  ;  and,  at  the  age  of 
twenty-one,  he  was  already  chapel-master  at  the 
Basilica  St.  Giovanni  in  Laterano.  In  15.17,  he 
received  an  engagement  in  the  chapel  of  Albert 
V.,  at  Munich,  where  he  remained  until  his 
death,  which  occurred  the  loth  of  June,  1594. 

The  mind  of  Lassus  was,  perhaps,  more  pro- 
ductive than  that  of  any  other  composer.  It  is 
estimated  that  he  composed  the  immense  num- 
ber of  two  thousand  works !  A  modern  writer, 
Carlus  Proske,  gives  so  just  an  estimate  of 
Lassus'  great  genius,  that  I  cannot  do  better 
than  to  insert  it  here.  "  Orlando  di  Lasso  pos- 
sessed a  universal  mind.  No  one  among  his 
contemporaries  had  such  a  clear  will,  or  such  a 
mastery  over  the  machinery  of  his  art :  what- 
ever he  needed  for  his  tone-picture,  he  was  able 
to  grasp  with  certainty.  He  was  never  unsuc- 
cessful, whether  in  the  contemplative  mood  of 
the  church,  or  in  the  merry  caprices  of  profane 
song.  He  was  great  both  in  the  lyric  and  epic 
styles,  and  would  have  been  still  greater  in  the 
dramatic,  had  his  age  possessed  this  branch  of 
musical  composition.  In  his  works,  we  discover 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  07 

traits  of  such  dramatic,  epic  truth  and  strength, 
that  we  feel  as  if  we  had  been  fanned  by  the 
breath  of  a  Dante,  a  Michael  Angelo.  If  we  place 
Palestrina  by  the  side  of  Raffaelle,  it  will  not  be 
too  far-fetched  a  comparison  to  place  our  master 
beside  the  great  Florentine.  Lassus  united  in 
himself  so  much  that  was  to  be  found  at  that 
time  in  the  music  of  each  European  nation,  that 
he  appeared  unique,  as  well  as  characteristic, 
and  could  not  be  held  up  as  an  especially  Italian, 
German,  Belgian,  or  French  composer.  No  one 
resembled  him  in  this  peculiarity  more  than  the 
great  Handel ;  and  as  he  united  in  himself  the 
German,  Italian,  and  English  genius  of  the 
eighteenth  century,  so  in  the  works  of  Lassus 
we  find  the  combined  glories  of  German  and 
Roman  art  of  his  time." 

Although  many  of  Lassus'  works  were  easily 
accessible  to  Baini  and  Burney,  yet  these,  in 
many  regards  meritorious  writers,  were  blinded 
as  to  the  great  merit  of  these  works.  Burney, 
in  his  "  General  History  of  Music,"  says, 
"  Indeed,  the  compositions  a  capella  of  Cyprian 
Rore  and  Orlando  Lasso  are  much  inferior  to 
those  of  Palestrina,  in  this  peculiarity :  for,  by 
striving  to  be  grave  and  solemn,  they  only  be^ 
come  heavy  and  dull ;  and  what  is  unaffected 
dignity  in  the  Roman  is  little  better  than  the 
strut  of  a  dwarf  upon  stilts  in  the  Netherland- 


98  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

ers."  Baini  in  his  "Miemorie  Storico-critiche  "  of 
Palestrina,  mentions  Lassus  in  the  following 
terms :  "  Orlandus  Lassus,  a  Netherlander  by 
birth  and  in  his  art,  without  fine  ideas,  without 
life  and  spirit ;  a  man,  who,  through  the  compo- 
sition of  a,  few  (?)  masses  and  motets  in  a  sim- 
ple style,  and  in  eight  parts,  has  usurped  the 
exaggerated  praise,  —  Lassus,  lassum  qui  recreat 
vrbem."  This  is  a  part  of  Lassus'  epitaph, 
which,  by  a  play  on  the  name  of  Lassus,  signi- 
fies, "  Here  rests  the  weary  who  refreshed  the 
weary."  It  has  been  reserved  to  our  time,  how- 
ever, to  set  the  works  of  Lassus,  and  of  many 
other  unjustly  forgotten  masters,  in  the  right 
light. 

With  Orlandus  Lassus'  death,  sacred  musical 
art  in  the  Low  Countries  vanished,  as  by  en- 
chantment, while  in  Italy  it  flourished  in  a  new 
and  brighter  light.  Such  composers  as  Anerio, 
the  Spaniard  Vittoria,  Suriano,  Luca  Marenzio, 
the  two  Gabrieli,  Monteverde,  Carissimi,  Ales- 
sandro  Scarlatti,  &c.,  created  works  after  works, 
which  were  everywhere  greeted  with  delight, 
and  which  gave  the  Italians  that  prestige  in 
musical  matters  which  they  retained,  all  over 
Europe,  until  the  beginning  of  the  present  cen- 
tury. 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  99 


THIRD   LECTURE. 

The  Oratorio,  including  the  Passion,  the  Mysterj  and  Miracl* 
Plays,  and  Protestant  Church  Music  from  the  Twelfth  Cen- 
tury to  the  Death  of  Schumann. 

OUR  modern  oratorio  and  opera  both  took  root 
in,  and  trace  their  origin  from,  those  early  sacred 
plays  called  Mysteries,  Moralities,  or  Miracle 
Plays.  Those  Eastern  nations,  the  descendants 
of  the  Greeks  and  the  Romans,  after  their  con- 
version to  the  Christian  religion,  would  persist, 
so  history  tells  us,  in  their  natural  tendency  to 
theatrical  representations,  —  a  remnant  of  the 
old  heathen  practice,  as  well  in  religious  as  in 
secular  life  ;  and  the  subjects  of  these  theatrical 
representations,  in  spite  of  anathemas  from  the 
pulpit,  were  almost  solely  taken  from  heathen 
mythology.  But,  in  the  first  centuries  of  the 
Christian  religion,  it  was  soon  apparent  to  the 
heads  of  the  new  Church,  that  to  impress  the 
lively  imaginations  of  these  nations,  and  to  at- 
tract them  to  the  service  of  the  new  religion,  it 

•  O  ' 

was  necessary  to  give  their  religious  service  sym- 
bolic forms  in  order  to  reach  the  mind  through 


ICO  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC'. 

the  senses.  In  the  new  religion,  they  were  to 
find  every  thing  more  beautiful  than  in  the  old. 
With  this  many  a  heathen  custom  first  found  its 
way  into  the  ceremonies  of  the  new  Church,  and 
also  the  love  for  theatrical  representations. 
Thus  we  find,  from  the  earliest  times,  among  all 
nations,  the  dramatic  element,  so  innate  to  man's 
nature,  first  associated  with  religious  worship. 
With  the  dominion  of  the  Christian  religion  all 
over  Europe,  and  in  the  similarity  of  the  ar- 
rangement of  the  religious  office,  the  same  cus- 
toms, the  same  ceremonies,  established  them- 
selves in  the  different  churches.  The  priests, 
the  supreme  guides  of  the  congregation  in  spir- 
itual and  social  matters,  —  even,  to  a  certain  de- 
gree, in  politics  also,  —  were  eager  to  turn  all 
their  tendencies  to  secular  festivities  and  amuse- 
ments to  the  benefit  of  the  Church,  and,  to  this 
end,  arranged  spiritual  plays,  the  subjects  taken 
from  the  Old  and  New  Testaments,  or  the 
lives  of  the  saints,  &c.,  which  were  played,  for 
instruction  and  edification  in  the  religious  mys- 
teries, on  a  stage  erected  in  the  building  of  the 
church,  generally  under  the  choir.  Priests  in 
appropriate  costumes,  representing,  according  to 
the  subject,  God  the  Father,  Christ,  the  angels, 
and  Mary,  were  the  actors ;  and,  as.  women  were 
not  allowed  to  appear  on  the  stage,  their  parts 
were  also  in  the  hands  of  priests.  That  these 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  101 

sacred  representations  made  a  great  impression 
upon  the  pious  audiences  can  be  proved  by  many 
an  historical  fact.  It  is  said,  that,  at  the  miracle 
play  of  the  five  wise  and  five  foolish  virgins, 
acted  in  the  year  1322,  before  the  elector  Fred- 
eric, at  Eisenach,  a  scene  representing  the  five 
foolish  virgins,  who  vainly  besought,  with  great 
fervor,  the  Virgin  Mary  and  the  saints  for  their 
intercession  at  the  throne  of  God,  and  for  admis- 
sion into  Paradise,  excited  the  elector  so  much, 
that  he  exclaimed,  with  great  indignation,  "  To 
what  good  are  Christianity  and  pious  works,  if 
even  the  prayers  of  the  saints  cannot  procure 
help  and  forgiveness  ? "  Pie  was  so  deeply 
moved,  that  he  had  a  stroke  of  apoplexy,  of 
which  he  afterwards  died.  In  the  course  of  the 
next  centuries,  profane  elements,  principally  in 
Italy,  Spain,  and  France,  where  the  traditions 
of  the  old  Roman  theatrical  representations  were 
not  yet  entirely  extinguished,  began  to  be  mixed 
with  the  holy  legends.  As  these  miracle  and 
mystery  plays  became  more  and  more  the  fa- 
vorite entertainments  of  the  congregations,  they 
lasted  several  days,  and  the  number  of  actors 
amounted  to  several  hundreds.  Soon  the 
churches  were  not  ample  enough  to  give  room 
to  the  eager  audiences ;  and  thus  immense  stages 
were  erected  in  the  streets,  on  market-places, 
and  even  in  cemeteries.  These  stages,  built  of 


102  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

boards,  were  generally  divided  into  three  stories. 
The  upper  one  represented  heaven,  the  second 
earth,  and  the  lowest  hell.  The  actors  inarched 
in  procession  to  their  different  places.  Corpora- 
tions formed  themselves  to  arrange  the  miracle 
plays  in  a  more  regular  way.  In  Rome,  the 
"  Compagnia  del  Confalone"  existed  (in  the 
latter  part  of  the  thirteenth  century),  which  se- 
lected the  Coliseum  for  its  place  of  meeting.  In 
Paris,  we  see  the  "  Confrerie  de  la  Passion,"  the 
"  Ct>nfr'v-ie  de  Bazoche."  As  soon  as  these  mys- 
tery and  miracle  plays  passed  from  the  hands  of 
the  priests  and  monks  into  those  of  the  people, 
their  character  of  sacred  representations  lost  its 
dignity  and  meaning.  Jongleurs,  histrions,  and 
all  sorts  of  vagabonds,  took  a  lively  part' in  these 
plays ;  and  thus  the  sacred  elements  were  not 
seldom  submerged  by  profane  satires,  comic 
scenes,  and  gross  buffoonery.  Therefore  it  is 
not  strange  that  these  people  began  to  rival  each 
other  in  obscene  deeds  and  language  :  the  most 
holy  rites  of  religious  ceremonies  were  degraded 
by  low  and  silly  jokes  ;  instead  of  sacred  hymns, 
impudent  street-songs  resounded  before  the 
altar  of  the  church ;  and  the  most  important 
person  in  the  miracle  plays,  though  also  the 
most  abused,  was  the  devil.  He  was  very  popu- 
lar with  our  forefathers.  They  dressed  him  up 
in  the  most  fantastic,  extravagant,  and  alarming 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 


103 


manner.  In  France,  not  less  than  four  devils 
had  sometimes  to  appear  in  one  play.  He  did 
not  yet  represent  the  bad  principle ;  but  his  parts 
were  those  of  a  clown,  or  a  poor,  abused  imbe- 
cile. He  always  got  the  worst  of  it.  "  All 
Fools'  Day"  and  the  "Donkey's  Festival"  were, 
for  a  long  time,  the  most  popular  occasion  of 
general  amusement.  At  the  "  Donkey's  Festival," 
in  commemoration  of  the  flight  of  Mary  with  the 
infant  Christ  to  Egypt,  a  donkey  was  dressed  in 
the  gown  of  a  monk,  and  thus  led  into  the 
church :  sometimes  a  young  girl,  holding  a  doll, 
to  represent  Mary  with  the  child,  rode  on  it. 
Then  the  priest  intoned  the  Latin  hymn,  "  Orien- 
tis  partibus."  The  congregation  responded  by 
repeating  the  last  verse,  "Hez,  Sir  Ane,  hez."* 
11. 


0  -  ri  -en-tis  par-tibus,  ad-ven-ta-vit  a-  si-  nus,  pulcher 


1 


•4- 


et  for-tis-simus,  Sarci-nis  ap-tis-si-mus.  Hez,  sir  Ane,  hez. 

During  the  whole  ridiculous  ceremony,  psalms 
and  hymns,  parodied  by  the  most  absurd 
versions,  were  sung,  intermixed  with  the  imita- 
tion of  the  bray  ings  of  the  donkey.  "  All 
Fools'  Day,"  a  tradition  of  the  old  Roman  Sa- 


*  Forkel :  Geschichte  der  Music. 


104  ,    HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

turnalia,  was  celebrated  in  just  as  grotesque  a 
manner.  Though  the  humor  of  oui  ancestors 
very  often  lost  all  control  of  itself  in  the  celebra- 
tion of  the  miracle-plays,  from  the  element  of 
these  mysteries  and  moralities,  as  I  have  said  be- 
fore, emerged  the  forms  of  the  oratorio  and  the 
opera,  the  richest,  and,  in  an  artistic  as  well  as 
in  a  poetical  sense,  the  highest,  of  modern  mu- 
sical art-forms. 

The  origin  of  the  name  "  Oratorio,"  applied  to 
a  particular  art-form,  is  the  following :  Those 
great  reforms  in  the  Christian  Church,  inaugu- 
rated at  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century 
by  Luther  in  Germany,  and  long  ago  felt  and 
hoped  for,  as  inevitably  necessary,  by  the  purest 
and  noblest  minds,  could  not  fail  to  affect  and 
influence,  in  the  most  salutary  way,  the  whole 
Catholic  world.  Among  those  of  the  Catholic 
clergy  who  deeply  deplored  the  great  demorali- 
zation which  then  menaced  the  overthrow  of 
the  old  religion,  who  at  the  same  time  saw  the 
necessity  of  a  return  to  purer,  more  legitimate 
Christian  principles,  and  who  devoted  the  most 
precious  hours  of  their  life  to  these  purposes, 
appears  St.  Philip  Neri,  born  1515,  in  Florence, 
and  in  1561  consecrated  as  a  priest  at  Rome.  Neri 
afterwards  founded  a  congregation  of  priests  in 
Rome.  Before  these  congregations,  he  explained 
biblical  histories ;  and,  in  order  to  draw  youths 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC  105 

to  church,  and  to  keep  them  from  secular  amuse- 
ments, he  used  to  have  hymns,  psalms,  and 
other  "  Laudi  spiritual!,"  or  spiritual  songs,  sung 
alternately  with  his  teachings.  But,  .to  render 
these  pious  meetings  still  more  attractive,  he 
arranged  and  dramatized,  in  a  simple  form,  the 
sacred  stories  or  events  from  the  Scriptures, 
such  as  "  The  Good  Samaritan,"  "  Job  and  his 
Friends,"  "The  Prodigal  Son,"  "Tobias  and 
the  Angels,"  &c.  These  pieces  were  written  in 
verse,  and  set  to  music  in  the  manner  of  hymns 
for  a  chorus  in  four  parts,  in  which  parts  for 
alternate  single  voices  occasionally  appear  also. 
The  composer  who  was  first  associated  with 
Neri  in  his  beneficial  labors  was  Animucia, 
chapel  -  master  to  the  pope,  and  afterwards 
Palestrina.  These  sacred  plays,  or  "  Azioni 
sacre,"  were  divided  into  two  parts.  The  ser- 
mon was  delivered  after  the  first  part ;  but  the 
performance  interested  the  congregation  so 
much  "  that  there  was  no  clanger,  during  the 
sermon,  that  any  of  the  hearers  would  retire 
before  they  had  heard  the  second."  As  these 
"Azioni  sacre"  were  not  performed  in  the 
church  itself,  but  in  an  adjoining  hall  or  room 
called  an  "  oratory,"  or,  in  Italian,  oratorio,  thi.s 
title  has  since  been  applied  to  this  species  of 
sacred  musical  drama. 

Though  the  oratorio  gained  wider  form  hand 


106  HISTORY  OF  MUtflV. 

in  hand  with  the  secular  drama  called  opera,  its 
ideal  sacred  meaning  and  expression  rest  upon 
the  idea  St.  Philip  Neri  first  introduced  in  his 
prayer-meetings.  Like  the  first  opera  in  Flor- 
ence, the  first  oratorio  was  also  composed  and 
performed  in  Rome,  in  the  year  1600.  Its 
author  is  Emilio  del  Cavaliere,  who  played  such 
a  conspicuous  part  in  the  invention  of  the  musi- 
cal drama,  and  of  whose  labors  I  have  treated  in 
my  lecture  on  the  opera.  "  L'Anima  d  Corpo," 
written  by  a  lady,  Laura  Guidiccioni,  was  the 
name  of  that  first  sacred  musical  drama,  which 
,was  set  to  music  by  Emilio  del  Cavaliere. 
It  was  performed  and  acted  on  a  stage  erected, 
probably,  in  the  oratory  of  the  new  church  of 
Neri,  the  St.  Maria,  in  Valliccella.  It  is  curious 
to  observe,  that,  in  Rome,  oratorios  were  repre- 
sented and  acted  on  a  stage  with  decorations, 
like  the  opera,  and  principally  at  times  of  fast- 
ing, as  late  as  the  beginning  of  this  century. 
I  extract  from  Bumey's  "  History  of  Music " 
the  description  of  the  first  oratorio,  "  L'Anima  e 
Corpo,"  or,  rather,  the  directions  which  Emilio 
del  "Cavaliere  gives  for  the  performance  and 
composition  of  a  similar  work  :  — 

"  It  is  recommended  to  place  the  instruments 
of  accompaniment  behind  the  scenes,  which,  in 
this  first  oratorio,  were  the  following :  A  double 
lyre,  a  harpsichord,  a  large  or  double  guitar,  and 
two  flutes. 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  107 

"1.  The  words  should  be  printed,  with  the 
verses  correctly  arranged,  the  scenes  numbered, 
and  characters  of  interlocutors  specified. 

"  2.  Instead  of  the  overture,  or  symphony,  to 
modern  musical  drama,  a  madrigal  is  recom- 
mended, as  a  full  piece,  with  all  the  voice- 
parts  doubled,  and  a  great  number  of  instru- 
ments. 

"3.  When  the  curtain  rises,  two  youths,  who 
recite  the  prologue,  appear  on  the  stage ;  and, 
when  they  have  done,  Time,  one  of  the  charac- 
ters in  the  Morality,  comes  on,  and  has  the  note 
with  which  he  is  to  begin  given  him  by  the 
instrumental  performers  behind  the  scenes. 

"  4.  The  chorus  are  to  have  a  place  allotted 
them  on  the  stage,  part  sitting  and  part  stand- 
ing, in  sight  of  the  principal  characters ;  and, 
when  they  sing,  they  are  to  rise  and  be  in 
motion,  with  proper  gestures. 

"  5.  Pleasure,  another  imaginary  character, 
with  two  companions,  are  to  have  instruments  in 
their  hands,  on  which  they  are  to  play  while 
they  sing  and  perform  the  ritornels. 

"  6.  II  Corpo,  the  Body,  when  these  words  are 
uttered,  '  Si  cJie  hormia  alma  mia,  &c.,  may 
throw  away  some  of  his  ornaments,  as  his  gold 
collar,  feather  from  his  hat,  &c. 

"7.  The  World,  and  Human  Life  in  particular, 
are  to  be  gayly  and  richly  dressed ;  and,  when 


108  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

they  are  divested  of  their  trappings,  to  appeal 
very  poor  and  wretched,  and  at  length  dead 
carcasses. 

"  8.  The  symphonies  and  ritornels  may  be 
played  by  a  great  number  of  instruments  ;  and, 
if  a  violin  should  play  the  principal  part,  it  would 
have  a  good  effect. 

"  9.  The  performance  may  be  finished  with  or 
without  a  dance.  If  without,  the  last  chorus  is 
to  be  doubled  in  all  its  parts,  vocal  and  instru- 
me'ntal ;  but,  if  a  dance  is  preferred,  a  verse  be- 
ginning thus:  '  Chiostri  altissimi,  e  stellati,'  is 
to  be  sung,  accompanied  sedately  and  reveren- 
tially by  the  dance.  These  shall  succeed  other 
grave  steps,  and  figures  of  the  solemn  kind. 
During  the  ritornels,  the  four  principal  dancers 
are  to  perform  a  ballet,  "  saltato  con  capriole" 
enlivened  with  capers  or  entrechats,  without 
singing,  and  thus,  after  each  stanza,  always 
varying  the  steps  of  the  dance  ;  and  the  four 
principal  dancers  may  sometimes  use  the  galiard, 
some  times  the  canary,  and  sometimes  the  courant 
step,  which  will  do  very  well  in  the  ritornels. 

"  10.  The  stanzas  of  the  ballet  are  to  be  sung 
and  played  by  all  the  performers  witliin  and 
without." 

These  instructions  will  serve  to  give  an  idea 
of  the  oratorio  in  its  iniancy.  It  is  also  curious 
to  observe  the  conspicuous  part  the  ballet,  or 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 


1U(J 


dancing,  played  in  these  early  oratorios.     Here 
is  a  chorus  from  "  L'Anima  e  Corpo" 


3EE 


4=: 


-y f— r 

mP- 


?f=g±?=^ 

r       I  ii1 

riJJJ    j    -lAf* 

ET~^ — ^T~*~*:  =^±±r 


f 


i       i 


1 


Ques  -  ta       vi  -   ta    mor  -  ta   -   le     per    fu  -  gir 

/T\  /TV 


J 


-^~ 


pres  -  to  ha     1'a     -    le     e     con  tal  fret-ta     pas  -    sa 

rr\ 


ch'a  dietro  i    ven-  ti      e    le    sa  -  et  -  te     las    -    sa. 


The  development  of  the  different  forms  of  the 
sacred  musical  drama,  such  as  the  aria,  the  reci- 
tative, the  duet,  and  the  chorus,  was  influenced 
by  that  of  the  opera.  But  though  the  melo- 
dious flowing  aria,  and  expressive  recitativo,  re- 


110  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

placed  the  old  liturgical  chants  and  psalmodies, 
composers  strove  to  wed  adequate  music  to 
sacred  words ;  and  thus,  in  the  course  of  time,  a 
distinct  line  of  demarcation  was  drawn  between 
the  musical  forms  and  contents  of  the  oratorio 
and  those  of  the  opera. 

Among  the  Italian  composers  who  contributed 
most  to  the  advancement  of  the  musical  drama, 
and  especially  of  the  oratorio,  I  must  mention 
Carissimi,  born  about  1604,  in  Marino,  near 
Rome.  Carissimi,  who  devoted  the  greater 
part  of  his  labors  to  the  development  of  the 
sacred  cantata,  and  who  deserves  so  much  credit 
for  the  perfection  of  the  recitative,  composed 
quite  a  number  of  oratorios,  full  of  noble  music. 
Some  of  the  choruses  are  rich  and  grand  in 
their  effect.  Among  the  oratorios  which  he 
composed  are  "  Jephtha,"  "  Solomon's  Judg- 
ment," "  Belshazzar,"  "  Jonas,"  "  The  History 
of  Job,"  "  David  and  Jonathan,"  "  Abraham  and 
Isaac,"  &c.  Italian  composers  of  importance, 
who  lived  at  this  epoch,  and  who  also  com- 
posed oratorios,  were  Stradella,  Scarlatti,  Cal- 
dara,  Colonna. 

Though  the  form  and  the  name  of  the  oratorio 
are  of  Italian  invention  and  origin,  yet,  as  we 
shall  see,  German  Protestant  composers,  Handel 
and  Bach,  were  destined  to  bring  it  to  that  high 
point  of  perfection  which  to-day  stamps  this 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  11 1 

noble  form  of  musical  drama  as  the  ideal, 
the  goal,  to  reach  which  few  composers  have  the 
strength  of  talent  and  the  necessary  knowledge. 
Here,  however,  we  have  first  to  consider  another 
species  of  oratorio,  and  its  historical  develop- 
ment,—  the  Passion  oratorio,  which  has  grown 
side  by  side  with  the  oratorio  proper. 

The  custom  of  representing,  during  Passion- 
week,  in  an  epic-dramatic  form,  the  Passion  of 
Christ,  dates  back  to  the  earlier  period  of  the 
middle  ages,  and  this  became  foremost  among 
the  miracle  plays.*  A  priest  recited  the  part 
of  Jesus,  another  that  of  th°  Evangelist,  and  a 
third  the  other  parts ;  the  ^eople  (turlce),  the 
disciples,  the  Jews,  &c.,  were  represented  by 
the  chorus.  This  is  the  traditional  manner  in 
which  it  is  still  performed  in  the  Sixtine  Chapel 
in  Rome.  The  dramatic  element  remains  to  a 
considerable  degree  in  the  back-ground ;  and  the 
music,  which  is  only  sung  in  the  form  of  chants, 
appears  in  a  very  subordinate  way.  In  the  six- 
teenth century,  some  Protfestant  congregations 
introduced  the  custom  of  having  the  Passion 
performed  in  an  entire  musical  form.  The 
oldest  known  Passion-music,  by  a  Protestant 
composer,  is  to  be  found  in  KeuchenthaT 's  hymn- 

*  An  interesting  remnant  of  this  custom  still  exists,  even  in  our  days. 
In  Oberammergau,  in  the  southern  part  of  Bavaria,  the  peasants  perform 
and  represent  a  Passion  play,  according  to  the  old  traditions,  at  interval? 
of  ten  years.  In  Spain,  also.  Passion  plays  ;.re  still  occasionally  per 
formed. 


112  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

book,  published  1573.*  The  soliloquy  is  in 
recitative  form  :  there  are  short  choruses  besides 
foi  the  turbce,  or  people ;  a  four-part  chorus 
opens  and  finishes  it.  Similar  in  construction 
is  the  Passion-music  in  Seleneca's  hymn-book, 
1587.  Of  greater  artistic  importance  are  the 
works  of  Henry  Schuetz,  born  1585,  died  1672. 
Schuetz  was  a  pupil  of  the  celebrated  master, 
Giovanni  Gabrieli  of  Venice.  Initiated  into  all 
the  secrets  of  musical  composition,  he  returned 
to  German}7",  and  finally  settled  'in  Dresden  as 
chapel-master  to  the  elector,  George  I.  Schuetz 
was  an  upright,  conscientious,  and  earnest  artist. 
Like  a  saint,  he  devoted  the  best  fruits  of  his  tal- 
ent to  the  Church.  Faithful  and  unshaken,  he 
fulfilled  his  duties  even  through  the  horrors  of 
that  great  calamity,  the  Thirty  Years'  War.  His 
sphere  of  action  was  of  the  greatest  influence 
on  the  development  of  German  musical  art. 
He  earnestly  endeavored  to  transplant  to  his 
native  country  all  those  forms  of  musical  com- 
position which  Italy  then  possessed  in  such  high 
perfection ;  and,  though  a  pupil  of  the  Italians, 
he  stamped  his  works  with  his  own  powerful 
German  individuality.  I  have  stated,  in  my  lec- 
ture on  the  opera,  that  Schuetz  set  "  Daphne  '' 
to  music,  —  the  first  opera  which  appeared  in 
Germany.  Besides  madrigals,  psalms,  and  sacred 

*  Carl  von  Winterfeli:  Der  Evangelishe  Kirchengesang. 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  113 

songs,  he  also  composed  several  Passion  ora- 
torios ;  and  the  effective  manner  in  which  he 
wrote  his  choruses  already  points  to  Handel. 
They  are  great  and  powerful  creations.  It  is 
Handelian  spirit  that  already  speaks  to  us, 
though  Handel  was  not  yet  born  when  Schuetz 
died.  He  forms  the  first  link  of  that  long  chain 
of  great  masters,  who,  through  their  immortal 
works,  won  for  Germany  the  supremacy  in  mod- 
ern musical  culture.  Schuetz's  works  may  be 
considered  as  the  foundation  of  the  form  of 
modern  German  oratorio  music ;  though  he  has 
not,  in  fact,  written  an  oratorio  in  our  sense. 

The  Passion  music  by  the  Prussian  chapel- 
master,  John  Sebastiani,  composed  and  published 
in  1672  (the  year  of  Henry  Schuetz's  death), 
shows  a  progress  beyond  his  predecessors.  We 
meet  here,  for  the  first  time,  Protestant  choral 
melodies,  set  and  harmonized  for  different  parts 
in  an  artistic  manner,  —  a  peculiarity  Sebastian 
Bach  made  such  an  effective  use  of  in  his  Pas- 
sion oratorios  and  Ids  cantatas.  The  biblical 
narration  is  no  more  in  the  forms  of  psalmody 
or  chanting,  as  we  find  it  yet  in  Schuetz's  Pas- 
sions, but  in  recitative  form,  accompanied  with 
two  violins,  or  violas  and  bass.  The  turbce,  or 
people,  appear  as  a  four-part  chorus  ;  but  as  the 
Evangelist,  sung  by  a  tenor  voice,  also  joins  in 
an  independent  manner,  these  choruses  thus 


114  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

consist,  properly,  of  five  parts.  In  the  sacred 
songs,  or  chorales,  only  the  highest  part  was 
sung ;  the  other  voices  were  executed  by  violas 
and  a  bass.  At, the  last  verse  of  the  closing 
chorale,  all  the  parts,  instrumental  and  vocal, 
joined.  Here  we  have  the  fundamental  form 
upon  which  Bach  built  his  Passion  oratorios. 

I  must  here  mention  the  peculiar  manner  in 
which  that  celebrated  opera  composer,  Reinhard 
Keiser^  composed  and  brought  out  in  Hamburg, 
1704,  a  Passion  oratorio,  entitled  "  The  Bleeding 
and  Dying  Jesus."  Hunold  Menantes  wrote 
the  verses.  The  Evangelist  reciting  the  biblical 
narrative,  as  had  been  the  custom,  was  left  out, 
and  also  the  chorale  ;  but,  instead  of  that,  three 
cantatas,  resembling  scenes  from  dramatic  ope- 
ra,—  "  The  Lamentation  of  Mary,"  the  Tears  of 
St.  Peter,"  and  a  sighing,  sentimental  love-song, 
sung  by  the  "  Daughter  of  Zion," — were  substi- 
tuted. The  work  made  quite  a  sensation  when 
it  was  first  performed  in  Hamburg.  But,  at  the 
same  time,  it  seems  the  poet  and  the  composer 
were  sharply  censured  from  the  pulpit  for  their 
innovation.  Though  this  form  could  not  estab- 
lish itself,  it  greatly  influenced  future  efforts. 
In  the  subsequent  poem  by  Brookes,  treating 
of  the  same  subject,  we  have  an  attempt  to 
unite  the  old  tradition  with  this  new  manner. 
Between  the  original  biblical  narrative,  he  wrote 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  115 

verses  of  pious  content,  relating  to  the  situa- 
tion ;  and,  at  convenient  points,  the  Protestant 
sacred  song,  the  chorale,  finds  a  place.  Reiser 
composed  music  to  this  new  version  ;  also,  Mat- 
theson,  Handel,  and  Teleman.  Bach  has  also 
taken  some  of  the  verses  of  Brockes's  poem  for 
different  arias  in  his  Passion,  according  to  St. 
John. 

Before  I  speak  of  the  works  of  Bach  and 
Handel,  it  will  be  necessary,  for  the  understand- 
ing and  appreciation  of  many  a  peculiar  point 
in  these  works,  to  examine  the  musical  culture 
of  Protestant  Germany  since  the  Reformation. 

The  deeply-rooted  love  of  accompanying,  with 
appropriate  songs,  all  their  occupations  in  the 
house  and  the  field,  as  well  as  their  religious 
service,  is  a  peculiarity  which  has  been,  in  all 
times,  a  prominent  trait  in  the  character  of  the 
German  people  ;  and  to  this  we  owe  many  a 
beautiful  melody.  Though  the  Catholic  Church 
sanctioned  and "  admitted  only  the  Latin  lan- 
guage at  its  regular  church  service,  long  before 
the  Reformation,  sacred  people's-songs,  with 
German  words,  were  sung,  alternately,  with  the 
Latin  psalms  and  hymns  in  the  Catholic 
churches  of  Germany.  Similar  German  songs 
were  regularly  intermixed  with  the  dramatic  re- 
citations of  the  miracle  and  mystery  plays. 
Besides  sacred  people's-songs,  there  was  also  an 


116  HISTORY  OF  MCSIC. 

abundance  of  charming  secular  songs  ;  and  the 
best  German  composers  set  and  arranged  them 
in  three,  four,  five,  and  more  parts.  It  was  well' 
that  the  great  reformer,  Luther,  had  such  a  high 
idea  of  art,  and  of  music  in  particular.  "  I  am 
not  of  the  opinion,  that,  through  the  gospel,  all 
arts  should  be  banished  and  driven  away,  as 
some  zealots  want  to  make  us  believe ;  but  I 
wish  to  see  all  arts,  principally  music,  in  the  ser- 
vice of  Him  who  gave  and  created  them." 
Thus  said  Luther  himself.  He  was  passionately 
fond  of  music.  He  calls  it  one  of  the  greatest 
gifts  of  the  Creator,  and  assigned  it  the  first 
place  next  to  divinity  ;  "  for,  like  this,"  he  says, 
"  it  sets  the  soul  at  rest,  and  places  it  in  a  most 
happy  mood,"  —  "a  clear  proof,"  says  he  fur- 
ther, "  that  the  demon  who  creates  such  sad 
sorrows  and  ceaseless  torments  retires  as  fast 
before  music  and  its  sounds  as  before  divinity. 
There  is  no  doubt  that  the  seed  of  many  vir- 
tues exists  in  the  minds  of  those'  who  love  mu- 
sic ;  but  those  who  are  not  moved  by  it,  in  my 
estimation,  resemble  sticks  and  stones."  As  a 
means  of  education,  he  attached  great  impor- 
tance to  the  influence  of  music.  "  It  is  benefi- 
cial," he  says,  "  to  keep  youth  in  continual 
practice  in  this  art,  for  it  renders  people  intel- 
lectual :  therefore,  it  is  necessary  to  introduce 
the  practice  of  music  in  the  schools ;  and  a 


HISTORY  OF  MUblC.  117 

schoolmaster  mu  st  know  how  to  sing,  otherwise 
I  do  not  respect  him."  After  the  establishment 
of  the  first  Protestant  church,  Luther's  greatest 
endeavor  was  to  adorn  it  with  a  fitting  musical 
service.  To  this  end,  he  associated  with  himself 
John  Walter,  and  Conrad  Rupf,  or  Rumpf, 
both  musicians  in  the  chapel  of  Frederic  the 
Wise,  elector  of  Saxony.  Luther  and  his  asso- 
ciates selected  and  arranged  some  of  the  finest 
Latin  hymns  and  German  songs,  as  used  already 
in  the  Catholic  Church.  Luther  was  not  as 
narrow,  in  this  respect,  as  Calvin  and  some  oth- 
ers of  the  Reformers.  He  well  appreciated 
those  "  many  good  songs  and  hymns,  both  Latin 
and  German."  —  "  Therefore,"  said  he  to  Wal- 
ter, "  it  is  not  right  in  those,  neither  can  I 
praise  them  for  banishing  all  the  Latin  Christian 
hymns  from  the  Church,  who  think  they  are  not 
good  Protestants  if  they  sing,  or  listen  to  the 
singing  of,  a  Latin  hymn.  On  the  other  hand, 
it  is  not  less  wrong  to  sing  only  Latin  hymns 
for  the  congregation."  Luther  had  the  great 
faculty  of  appreciating  the  wants  and  the  genius 
of  the  German  people  ;  and,  in  this  manner,  the 
reforms  which  he  introduced  in  the  Church  of 
Germany  found  a  welcome  echo  in  the  hearts 
of  his  nation.  It  is  known  that  Luther  has 
written  many  a  powerful  hymn,  full  of  Christian 
resignation,  and  confidence  in  the  everlasting 


118  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

decrees  of  God :  but  only  three  of  the  many  sa- 
cred melodies  which  were  once  attributed  to 
him  are  considered  as  his  throughout;  among 
which  is  the  celebrated  "JSinefette  Burg  is  unser 
Gott"  He  also  wrote  his  catechism  in  verse, 
and  had  it  set  to  music  in  four  parts.  The  first 
Protestant  hymn,  or  choral-book,  is  by  John 
Walter,  and  was  published  1524,  at  Wittenberg. 
It  originated  under  the  eyes  of  Luther,  and  ho 
wrote  a  preface  to  it.  The  songs  (some  of 
them  with  Latin  words)  were  set  by  Walter,  in 
four,  five,  and  six  parts.  The  principal  melody, 
with  a  few  exceptions,  is  still  assigned  to  the 
tenor.  The  custom  of  giving  the  melody  to  the 
highest  voice,  the  soprano,  did  not  come  into 
general  use  until  the  latter  part  of  .the  sixteenth 
century ;  as,  also,  the  practice  of  arranging  the 
songs  with  plainer  harmonies.  This  was  proba- 
bly done  for  the  better  convenience  of  the  con- 
gregations, who  were  accustomed  to  sing,  as  they 
still  do,  the  principal  melody  in  unison.  John 
Walter,  though  not  a  creative  talent,  or  a  con- 
trapuntist of  great  learning  and  facility,  will  al- 
ways occupy  a  meritorious  place  in  the  history 
of  music,  as  the  first  faithful  co-operator  of  Lu- 
ther in  the  establishment  of  the  German  Pro- 
testant sacred  musical  service.  Another  com- 
poser, whose  works  Luther  esteemed  very 
highly,  was  Ludwig  Senfle,  born,  according  to 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  119 

some,  at  Zurich,  to  others,  at  Basle.  He  was  a 
pupil  of  H.  Isaac,  and  chapel-master  to  the 
ducal  court  of  Munich.  Senfle  was  a  composer 
and  a  contrapuntist  of  great  resources  and 
learning  ;  his  works,  distinguished  by  ingenious 
contrapuntal,  though  clear  and  distinct,  combi- 
nations, by  natural  freshness  and  poetical  con- 
ception, were  much  admired  in  his  time.  Al- 
though Senfle  was  a  Catholic,  and  engaged  at  a 
Catholic  court,  Luther  was  in  intimate  relations 
with  him,  and  very  of  ten  the  reformer  asked  the 
musician  to  send  him,  or  set  for  him,  new  motets 
and  hymns.  In  a  letter,  of  the  year  1530,  Lu- 
ther asked  Senfle  the  favor  to  set  in  different 
parts,  for  him,  the  melody  to  the  eighth  verse  of 
the  fourth  psalm,  "  I  will  both  lay  me  down  in 
peace,  and  sleep ;  for  thou,  Lord,  only  makest 
me  dwell  in  safety."  Senfle's  compositions  al- 
ways refreshed,  consoled,  and  strengthened  him. 
"  I  believe  truly,"  he  writes,  "  that  the  end  of 
my  life  is  near.  The  world  hates  me,  and  I  am 
also  sick  of  the  world.  The  good  and  faithful 
Shepherd  may  take  my  soul.  I  already  sing  to 
my  own  self  the  antiphony,  but  I  wish  to  have 
it  set  in  an  efficient  manner."  There  is  no 
room  to  mention  all  those  composers  who  adapt- 
ed, arranged,  and  harmonized  already  known 
melodies  for  the  Protestant  Church,  and  some  of 
whose  melodies  are  still  sung  by  German  Pro- 


120  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

testant  congregations.  Among  the  foremost, 
however,  I  will  name  Leo  Hassler,  born  1564, 
at  Nuremberg,  a  composer  and  contrapuntist  of 
great  knowledge,  and  of  fine  artistic  taste  and 
invention ;  John  JEccard,  1553,  whose  German 
part-songs  are  so  fresh,  ingenious,  and  spirited, 
and  who  is  also  the  author  of  a  selection  of  very 
fine  sacred  songs ;  and  Michel  Prcetorius,  cele- 
brated as  composer  and  writer  on  musical  sub- 
jects. Pra3torius  was  a  man  of  great  experi- 
ence and  education.  He  travelled  much,  was  in 
Italy,  and  exercised,  through  his  writings,  a 
great  influence  on  the  development  of  musical 
art  in  Germany.  He  also  contributed  much  to- 
wards the  revolution  in  music  which  began  in 
Italy,  and  spread,  in  the  seventeenth  century,  all 
over  Europe. 

I  have  already  mentioned,  in  a  previous  lec- 
ture, that  the  Calvinists  of  Switzerland  and  the 
Huguenots  of  France  adopted  the  Psalms,  ver- 
sified by  Clement  Marot  and  Theodore  de  Beze, 
for  their  musical  service.  These  melodies,  as  far 
as  can  be  ascertained,  were  also  adapted  from 
popular  people's-songs,  and  harmonized,  in  a 
simple  form,  by  Claude  Goudimel  and  Claudin 
le  Jeune.  The  principal  melody  is  still  assigned 
to  the  tenor.  Many  of  these  charming  and 
truly  sacred  melodies  found  their  way  to  the 
Protestant  Lutheran  Church ;  and  even  English 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  121 

composers  adapted  them  to  the  English  Church 
service  (The  "  Old  Hundredth  "  is  one  of  those 
psalm-melodies) . 

Thus  we  see  that  the  first  reformers  and  the 
heads  of  the  Protestant  churches  endeavored  to 
make  their  congregations  take  part  in  the  sing- 
ing of  hymns  and  psalms.  Though  efficient 
choirs  yet  existed  in  the  principal  churches,  able 
to  perform  the  more  artistic  settings  of  the 
sacred  songs,  composers,  in  order  to  interest  the 
congregation  in  the  singing  of  the  hymns,  were 
gradually  obliged  to  abandon  the  old  custom  of 
assigning  to  the  tenor  the  principal  melody, 
and  to  invent  and  harmonize  melodies  fit  to  be 
sung  in  union  by  the  whole  congregation.  With 
the  introduction  of  organs  in  the  churches,  and 
the  engagement  of  efficient  organists,  capable  of 
sustaining  the  singing  of  the  congregation  with 
appropriate,  simple,  yet  characteristic  and 
solemn  harmonies,  the  musical  part  of  the  Pro- 
testant churches  assumed  that  character  which 
renders  it  sacred  people's-song,  in  the  fullest  ex- 
pression of  the  word.  Though  not  so  rich  in 
its  forms  as  the  mass  of  the  Catholic  Church, 
the  Protestant  chorale,  in  its  noble  simplicity 
and  grandeur,  influenced  the  musical  education 
of  German  composers  not  a  little ;  and,  of  these 
composers,  Bach  and  Handel  were  the  greatest. 

John  Sebastian  Bach  was  born  at  Eisenach, 


122  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

March  21, 1685.  He  was  a  musician  of  the  fifth 
generation  of  one  of  the  most  musical  families 
ever  produced  by  any  country.  At  the  age  of 
ten  he  was  left  an  orphan,  and  thus  came  under 
the  care  of  his  brother,  who  was  an  organist  at 
Ohrdruff,  and  who  also  gave  him  his  first  instruc- 
tion on  the  harpsichord,  or  clavier.  After  filling 
the  place  of  organist  and  "  concert-ineister  "  in 
Annstadt,  Muelhausen,  Weimar,  and  Anhalt- 
Koethen,  he  was  appointed  cantor  and  musical 
director  at  the  Thomas  School,  in  Leipzig,  a 
position  which  he  held  until  his  death,  July  28, 
1750.  The  last  years  of  his  life  were  saddened 
by  a  painful  disease  of  the  eyes,  which,  through 
an  unsuccessful  operation,  resulted  in  total 
blindness. 

Bach's  whole  social  career  may  be  summed 
up  in  a  few  words.  There  are  no  virtuoso 
triumphs  to  be  related,  which,  while  they  would 
have  been  the  means  of  great  pecuniary  gains 
to  him,  might  have  won  for  him  the  prestige  of 
romantic  intrigues,  and  success  also  ;  and  yet  he 
was  the  greatest  organist  and  performer  on  the 
harpsichord,  —  perhaps  the  greatest  organist  that 
ever  lived !  We  have  none  of  those  great  perform- 
ances of  his  works  to  describe,  on  account  of  which 
princes  and  nobles,  astonished  at  his  genius,  ri- 
valled each  other  in  seeking  to  place  him  at  the 
head  of  their  chapels.  He  was  too  upright  and 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  1-3 

modest,  too  true  to  his  German  individuality. 
Italians,  or  Italianized-German  composers,  then 
had  the  upper  hand  ;  and  yet  Bach  had  no  equal 
• —  unless  in  Handel  —  in  the  arts  of  counter- 
point, as  well  as  in  that  requisite  which  stamps 
real  genius,  —  original  melodious  invention  !  In 
1733,  in  the  dedication  prefixed  to  that  sublime 
work,  the  B-minor  Mass,  the  equal  of  which  is 
only  to  be  found  in  Beethoven's  Missa  Solemnis, 
the  cantor  Bach  besought  the  elector  of  Saxony 
to  protect  him  from  certain  diminutions  of  salary, 
to  which  he  was  entitled  as  chapel-master  of  two* 
churches  in  Leipzig.  The  salary  was  already 
small  enough.  In  the  same  dedication,  he 
modestly  requested  the  honorary  title  of  court- 
composer,  in  return  for  which  he  offered  to  write 
church  and  orchestral  music  as  often  as  the 
elector  should  demand  it.  He  did  not  obtain 
the  empty  title  until  three  years  later ;  but  no 
further  opportunity  of  composing  for  the  Church 
or  other  musical  institutions  was  offered  to  him 
by  the  court  of  Dresden.  They  wanted  senti- 
mental opera-music  in  the  Church  also :  there 
was  no  place  to  be  found  there  for  Bach's 
solemn,  pious,  noble  strains.  I  have  neither 
time  nor  space  to  give  due  consideration  to 
Bach's  works,  of  which  he  created  an  astonish- 
ing quantity'.  I  shall  limit  myself,  in  this  lec- 
ture, to  his  Passion  oratorios,  and  to  some 
remarks  on  his  cantatas  and  chorales. 


124  IHSTOnY  OF  MUSIC. 

Bach's  artistic  career  culminates  in  the  forma 
of  Protestant  church  music ;  and,  of  these,  the 
Protestant  sacred  song,  the  chorale,  received  his 
continual  attention.  No  other  composer  studied, 
and  turned  to  his  artistic  benefit,  the  harmonic 
and  melodic  resources  of  the  chorale,  like  Bach. 
In  this  point,  he  resembles  Palestrina,  who  held 
a  similar  beneficial  relation  to  the  Gregorian 
chant ;  and,  from  this  point  of  view,  the  t\vo 
great  masters  embodied  in  their  works  that  spir- 
itual life  and  expression  which  took  root  in  the 
mystic  creed  of  their  relative  churches.  In  his 
cantatas,  in  his  motets,  in  his  oratorios,  in  his 
works  for  the  organ,  —  everywhere  we  meet  in 
Bach's  works  the  chorale,  from  its  simplest 
form  of  a  plain  four-part  harmonization,  to  the 
most  artificial  combinations  which  the  deepest 
knowledge  of  counterpoint  can  lend  to  the  mas- 
ter. Everywhere  it  is  made  the  vehicle  of  pro- 
found ideal  contents.  In  his  great  cantatas,  how- 
ever, this  art  reaches  its  culmination.  In  the 
cantatas,  all  that  touches  man's  soul  most  deep- 
ly, every  feeling,  every  emotion,  from  the  cradle 
to  the  grave,  is  revealed  in  compositions  inex- 
haustible in  richness  of  harmony,  truthfulness 
of  melodious  expression,  and  the  greatest  varie- 
ty of  forms.  He  penetrates  the  spiritual  depth  of 
holy  writ,  raises  its  sense  by  means  of  his  incom- 
parable art,  transfigures  it  in  tone  until  its  whole 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  125 

meaning  is  revealed.  Bach's  church  m  isic  is  a 
perfect  exposition  of  the  text  which  forms  its 
foundation.  He  seems  to  have  found  at  once 
the  best  forms  for  all  his  creations  ;  even  where 
he  employs  the  most  ingenious  ones,  it  is  impos- 
sible to  detect  the  slightest  constraint.  The 
power  which  he  possessed,  of  instantaneously 
placing  himself  in  the  frame  of  mind  required  by 
the  exigencies  of  the  text  he  had  to  set  to  mu- 
sic, must  have  been  astonishing  :  from  this  only 
we  can  explain  to  ourselves  the  phenomenal 
production  of  such  a  vast  number  of  works  of 
the  highest  order.  Bach  is  said  to  have  composed 
five  Passion  oratorios.  But,  up  to  this  time, 
only  two  are  known  and  published;  the  one 
according  to  St.  John,  and  that  according  to  St. 
Matthew.  The  latter  is  the  more  perfect  of  the 
two.  The  formal  arrangement  of  the  St.  Mat- 
thew's Passion  is  based  upon  that  of  Bach's  pre- 
decessors. There  is  the  narrative  of  the  Passion 
of  Christ,  according  to  St.  Matthew,  recited  in 
a  recitative  form  by  a  tenor.  The  speech  of 
Jesus,  the  parts  of  St.  Peter,  of  the  Priest,  and 
of  Pontius  Pilate,  are  assigned  to  a  bass  voice, 
and  the  Jews  are  represented  by  a  chorus.  A 
second  group,  the  ideal  Christian  congregation, 
and  the  Daughter  of  Zion,  accompany  the  ac- 
tion with  moral  observations.  The  Protestant 
congregation,  forming  the  third  group,  inter 


126  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

mixes  the  different  situations  with  the  singing 
of  suitable  chorales.  It  is  not  possible  to  give 
an  adequate  description  of  this  beautiful  work : 
it  must  be  studied  and  heard.  All  that  Bach's 
genius  could  reach  lies  unfolded,  in  immortal 
master-strokes,  in  this  wonderful  sacred  poem. 
The  composer,  with  rare  tact  and  appreciation, 
knew  how  to  make  use  of  all  the  best  that  the 
forms  of  his  predecessors  and  his  contemporaries 
presented,  in  order  to  serve  his  own  noble  pur- 
poses. Great  genius,  and  an  extensive  knowl- 
edge of  the  deepest  secrets  of  musical  science, 
were  made  the  means  of  glorifying,  of  revealing 
the  most  sacred,  the  most  profound  emotions 
which  religion  grants  to  mankind. 

Besides  the  Passion  oratorios,  Bach  also  com- 
posed a  Christmas  oratorio. 

a.  F.  Handel  *  was  born  Feb.  23,  1685,  in 
the  same  year  as  his  great  contemporary,  J. 
S.  Bach.  In  my  lecture  on  the  opera,  I  have 
given  the  outlines  of  his  artistic  career.  Handel 
also  composed  two  Passion  oratorios  for  Ham- 
burg. The  first,  which  he  wrote  while  yet  a 
mere  youth,  shows  only  in  some  points  the  fu- 
ture great  master  ;  and  the  other,  full  of  admi- 
rable choruses  and  arias  (the  chorale  is 
also  employed  in  it),  was,  until  lately,  little 
known.  Handel  commenced  his  career  in  Lon- 

*  See  Chiysander's  excellent  Biography  of  Handel. 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  127 

don,  as  an  opera-composer ;  but  his  great  influ- 
ence on  the  musical  culture  of  England  is  to  be 
looked  for  in  his  oratorios.  While  yet  manager 
and  composer  of  Italian  operas,  he  had  already 
brought  out  (in  1720)  "Esther,"  his  first  oratorio ; 
and,  some  time  after,  "  Deborah  and  Athalia."  It 
was  only  when,  through  the  opposition  of  the 
English  aristocracy,  he  found  himself,  after 
years  of  manly  struggle,  nearly  a  ruined  man. 
that  he  devoted  his  whole  genius  to  the  ora 
torio.  In  the  year  1737,  his  career  as  opera 
manager  came  suddenly  to  an  end :  his  iron 
constitution  broke  down  ;  his  mental  faculties 
were  temporarily  disturbed,  and  an  attack  of 
paralysis  endangered  his  life.  After  a  short 
sojourn  at  Aix-la-Chapelle,  where  he  took  the 
baths,  he  returned  to  London,  and  in  quick  suc- 
cession created  in  his  latter  years  those  great 
sacred  dramas,  in  which  his  genius,  ripened  by 
immense  perseverance  and  almost  universal  ex- 
perience, embodied  in  immortal  tone-pictures 
the  everlasting  truths  of  men's  loftiest  aspira- 
tions. I  need  only  allude  to  "  The  Messiah," 
"Samson,"  "Israel  in  Egypt,"  u Solomon," 
"  Saul,"  "  Jephtha,"  "  Judas  Maccabseus,"  &c. 
As  opera-composer  and  manager,  Handel  had 
already  done  the  work  of  a  very  industrious 
man's  life  ;  besides  a  vast  number  of  remarkable 
works,  such  as  anthems,  motets,  psalms,  hymns. 


128  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

cantatas,  &c.,  which  were  composed  during  that 
time.  It  fills  us  with  awe  when  we  consider  the 
quantity  of  gigantic  works  which  he  produced 
after  he  had  passed  his  fifty-third  year.  Handel, 
through  his  failure  as  an  opera-manager,  was  thus 
destined  to  give  the  oratorio  its  lasting  form  ;  and 
his  oratorios  prove,  that  in  this  form  he  could 
realize,  in  the  highest  sense,  those  great  ideas  of 
dramatic  life  which  were  an  inner  necessity  of 
his  artistic  mind.  In  the  Holy  Scriptures  he 
found  his  immortal  heroes,  —  the  ideal  type  of 
Christian  ambition  and  virtue  :  there  also  he 
found  those  words  of  consolation  and  hope 
which  he  so  wonderfully  wedded  to  the  most 
exquisite  and  most  tender  strains  ;  there  he  also 
found  those  great  principles  of  truth,  religion,  ana 
liberty,  which  he  triumphantly  proclaimed  to 
the  world  by  means  of  his  powerful,  highly- 
spirited,  and  incomparable  choruses.  Not  in 
the  rigid  forms  of  purely  church  music, 
neither  in  the  empty  superficial  forms  of  the  opera 
of  his  days,  but  in  a  noble  universal  human  ex- 
pression, lay  the  mission  allotted  to  his  excep- 
tional genius  to  fulfil. 

Though  the  English  composers,  Arne,  Arnold, 
Stanley,  Green,  Worgan,  and  others,  have  also 
composed  oratorios,  their  works  had  only  a  tem- 
porary success,  and  have  since  sunk  into  obliv- 
ion. The  oratorio  in  our  sense,  has  never  been 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  1-0 

earnestly  and  suc3essfully  cultivated  in  France  : 
all  the  French  composers  of  any  note  have  al- 
most exclusively  devoted  their  best  efforts  to 
the  opera.  In  Italy,  the  influence  of  the  opera 
on  church  music  was  most  enervating.  The 
oratorios  by  such  composers  as  Jomelli,  Paisi- 
ello,  Zingarelli,  Cimarosa,  Guglielmi,  cannot  be 
distinguished  from  their  operas,  except  by  a  few 
choruses  in  the  fugue  form.  In  France  and 
Italy,  oratorios  were  generally  performed  in 
Lent  only,  when  the  performance  of  operas  was 
suspended.  The  Italian  and  French  composers, 
"  treading  without  much  thought  on  the  path 
which  the  poets  had  broken  up  for  them,  pro- 
ceeded to  treat  the  oratorio  like  the  opera-seria, 
though  less  restrained  in  their  handling  of  this 
form,  on  account  of  its  smaller  dramatic  require- 
ments. We  find  no  very  essential  difference  be- 
tween the  two  :  arias,  recitatives,  choruses,  are 
worked  out  in  much  the  same  way ;  only  we 
observe  the  bass  admissible  as  a  solo  voice 
first  in  oratorio.  Neither  poetry  nor  music  pos- 
sessed a  really  church-like  character :  composers 
modified  their  oratorio  style  merely  in  an  out- 
ward manner.  An  oratorio  air  would  have  suited 
a  similar  situation  in  a  serious  opera  :  an  operatic 
chorus  might  have  been  placed  in  an  oratorio, 
&c.  Both  oratorio  and  opera  were  considered 
by  songstresses  and  castrati  as  opportunities  for 


130  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

the  display  of  mechanical  dexterity ;  though,  in- 
deed, a  certain  limit  to  it  was  drawn  in  oratorio. 
The  direction  which  art  took  fully  agreed  with 
the  wishes  of  the  public :  the  latter  expected  to 
find  as  much  enjoyment  from  oratorio  (when 
this  was  fixed  upon  in  celebration  of  any  solem- 
nities) as  the  opera  could  present."  *  In  Ger- 
many, the  forms  of  the  Italian  opera  also  exer- 
cised great  influence  on  the  oratorio  and  church 
music  in  general.  The  Italianized  works  of 
Teleman,  Hasse,  and  Graun,  instead  of  those  of 
Handel  and  Bach,  were  the  models  of  all  Ger- 
man composers  of  any  significance.  With  few 
exceptions,  the  oratorios  of  these  musicians, 
composed  of  sentimental,  long,  and  empty  arias, 
and  dry  and  spiritless  contrapuntal  choruses, 
were  then  of  very  little  influence  on  real  Ger- 
man musical  art-culture.  I  must  also  mention 
the  Passion  oratorio,  the  "  Death  of  Jesus,"  by 
the  composer  Graun.  C.  H.  G-raun,  born  1701, 
and  the  favorite  composer  of  Frederic  the  Great, 
was  held  up  by  his  German  contemporaries  as 
the  model  composer  ;  and  his  "  Death  of  Jesus," 
performed  in  Berlin  every  Good  Friday,  was 
for  a  long  time  considered  as  the  work  par  ex- 
cellence, written  in  a  flowing  style.  Graun, 
who  then  held  the  same  position  in  Germany 
as  that  which  Mendelssohn  holds  in  .public 

*  Otto  .Talm :  Mozart. 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  131 

opinion  to-day,  is  now  as  much  underrated  as 
he  was  once  overrated.  He  has  written  some 
very  effective  and  purely  constructed  choruses. 
Other  German  composers  of  this  period,  whose 
works  still  present  some  fine  points,  were 
Homilius,  who  has  composed  a  Passion  oratorio  in 
a  noble  and  pure  style,  Naumann,  Krebs,  Stolzel, 
Rolle,  Schicht,  and  Ph.  E.  Bach,  the  son  of  J.  S. 
Bach.  The  close  imitation  of  the  text  of  the 
Bible,  and  even  the  selection  of  the  entire  sub- 
ject from  Holy  Writ,  so  piously  adhered  to  by 
Handel,  and  in  a  great  measure  by  Bach,  in 
their  grandest  works,  was  entirely  abandoned ; 
and  the  words,  in  the  form  of  operatic  libretti, 
Azioni  sacre,  arranged  and  dramatized  by 
Zeno  and  Metastasio,  were 'the  models  for  poets, 
and  eagerly  sought  for  by  composers.  .  "  La 
Betulia  Liberata,"  an  oratorio  libretto  by  Metas- 
tasio, was  such  a  favorite  text,  that,  from  1734 
to  1828,  Italian  and  German  composers  set  it  to 
music  over  and  over  again ;  even  in  1771,  Mo- 
zart tried  his  young  powers  on  it.  "  Davide 
penitente,"  also  by  Mozart,  is  a  transformation 
»f  a  mass  into  an  oratorio. 

Bach's  vocal  works  were  laid  aside  in  Ger- 
many ;  while,  in  England,  Handel's  oratorios  took 
from  year  to  year  a  deeper  root  in  the  hearts  of 
the  English  people.  The  regeneration  of  the 
opera  by  Gluck,  and  the  progress  of  instrumental 


\.<j'2  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

mu&ic,  gave,  however,  new  and  richer  forinu 
and  contents  to  the  art.  It  was  in  1791,  on.  a 
visit  to  London,  that  Joseph  Haydn,  born  March 
13,  1732,  and  the  creator  of  the  string  quartet 
and  the  modern  symphony,  heard,  probably 
for  the  first  time,  some  of  Handel's  oratorios 
performed.  Inspired  by  the  sublimity  of 
these  works,  he  afterwards  composed  the 
"  Creation "  and  the  "  Seasons."  Haydn,  al- 
ways original,  has  also  given  us,  in  the  oratorio 
form,  music  purely  of  his  own.  The  music  of 
his  oratorios  can  be  compared  "  to  a  charming 
garden,  blooming  among  green  meadows  and 
refreshing,  shadowy  bushes ;  while  Handel  re- 
minds one  of  imposing  mountains,  crowned  with 
noble  forests  of  cedars  and  oaks."  The  "  Crea- 
tion "  and  the  "  Seasons  "  are  well  known  and 
admired ;  and  they  will  remain  so  as  long  as  men 
are  capable  of  enjoying  pure,  spirited,  and 
healthy  music.  Through  Haydn,  the  instru- 
mental accompaniment  of  the  oratorio  has  been 
made  the  agency  of  greater  and  richer  effects. 
Beethoven 's  "  Mount  of  Olives,"  composed  in 
1800,  is  the  only  effort  the  great  master  made  in 
the  oratorio  form.  We  also  possess  the  fragment 
of  an  oratorio  by  the  genial  Franz  Schubert, 
"  Lazarus,"  which  was  performed  for  the  first 
time  in  1863.  Though  masters  like  F.  /Schneider, 
L.  Spohr,  B.  Klein,  K.  Loew ',  The.  Chevalier  Neit- 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  l'<-d 

kom,  composed  many  a  meritorious  oratorio, — 
I  need  only  mention  Schneider's  "  Weltgericht," 
Spohr's  "  Letze  Dinge,"  Klein's  "  David,"  — 
they  were  all  surpassed  by  the  popularity  which 
Mendelssohn'' s  oratorios  gained  hi  Germany  as 
well  as  in  England.  Mendelssohn,  endowed 
with  a  fine  perception  and  a  keen  eye,  under 
stood  at  once  the  depth  and  the  power  of  Han 
del's  and  Bach's  oratorios  and  other  choral 
works.  It  was  he  who  in  1829  had  Bach's  St. 
Matthew's  Passion  oratorio  performed  in  Berlin 
under  his  own  direction.  The  sublime  work 
had  then  slept  a  sleep  of  one  hundred  years  :  for 
it  was  performed  for  the  last  time  by  Bach  on 
Good  Friday,  1729.  How  much  Mendelssohn 
owes  to  his  great  models,  every  one  acquainted 
with  Bach's  and  Handel's  works  knows  ;  but  to 
what  a  great  and  effective  use  he  turned  his 
many  resources,  his  two  fine  oratorios  of  "  St. 
Paul "  and  "  Elijah  "  have  proven.  Mendels- 
sohn, more  lyric  than  dramatic,  more  refined 
than  profound,  more  conventional  than  original, 
who  mastered  the  whole  formal  material  of  his 
art  with  such  wonderful  facility,  ease,  and 
aplomb,  was  thus  understood  and  appreciated  at 
once  ;  and  if  we  study  the  whole  situation  of 
musical  art  when  "  St.  Paul  "  first  appeared,  w( 
cannot  help  thanking  the  talent  that  produced  it 
and  through  it  gave  new  impulses  to  musical  art 


134  HISTORY  OF  MUSHJ 

His  contemporary,  Robert  Schumann,  the  greatest 
composer  since  Beethoven's  death,  has  also  com- 
posed an  oratorio,  though  of  a  secular  character, 
"  Paradise  and  the  Peri."  This  beautiful  work  is, 
as  Schumann's  vocal  works  in  general  are,  too  sel- 
dom heard  here.  Schumann,  original  and  pro- 
found, exquisite,  ever  femininely  beautiful  in  his 
tender  strains,  and  of  imposing  grandeur  in  his 
large  forms,  like  all  true  original  geniuses  who 
adhere  more  to  principle  than  to  speculation, 
passed  away  before  he  found  a  deserved  recog- 
nition. 

These  are  the  historical  outlines  of  that  noble 
art-form,  the  oratorio,  with  as  much  detail 
as  my  limits  would  allow  me.  It  may  be  said 
that  the  oratorio  is  the  highest  form  of  musical 
dramatic  art,  in  the  sense  that  it  possesses  as 
foundation  and  contents  the  deepest  and  loftiest 
ideas  of  Christian  religious-moral  life.  Its 
heroes  and  heroines  are  the  ideal  instruments 
and  messengers  of  divinity.  Their  struggles, 
their  triumphs,  are  those  of  high  and  noble 
souls.  The  strains  with  which  the  composer  ex- 
presses their  emotions,  their  feelings,  must  thus 
aim  at  the  freest  and  most  ideal  perfection. 
Though  the  oratorio  makes  use  of  the  same  mu- 
sical forms  as  the  opera,  yet,  being  uncontrolled 
by  the  inevitable  action  of  the  opera  performer 
and  the  visible  changes  of  stage  machinery,  it 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  135 

can  develop  these  forms  freely,  and  thus  gain 
deeper  musical  meaning.  The  chorus,  forming 
one  of  the  most  important  factors  in  the  orato- 
rio, not  seldom  concentrates  in  itself  all  the 
rays  of  the  central  idea  of  the  composer's  sacred, 
dramatic  expression  and  inspiration.  The  purely 
sentimental,  the  realistic  passionate,  —  the  reflex 
of  human  life  in  its  continual  conflicts  and  strug- 
gles, and  the  necessary  basis  of  the  opera,  — 
do  not  find  such  a  conspicuous  place  in  the  ora- 
torio ;  and  those  composers  who  endeavor  to 
transform  the  ideal  form  of  the  oratorio,  by 
means  of  the  dramatic  element  in  the  sense  of 
the  modern  opera,  will  always  see  their  own  ef- 
forts, in  spite  of  talent  and  knowledge,  fall 
short  of  the  most  sanguine  expectations.  In  my 
opinion,  it  is  only  through  a  return  to  a  deep, 
earnest,  and  faithful  study  of  the  immortal 
works  of  those  great  oratorio  composers,  Han- 
del and  Bach,  that  a  new  foundation  and  a 
new  contents  can  be  regained.  Were  not  Haydn 
and  Mendelssohn  inspired  by  these  wonderful 
creations  ?  And  though  they  also  created  fine 
and  classical  works,  yet  they  did  not  reach,  far 
less  did  they  surpass,  their  great  models :  there- 
fore let  us  go  back  to  that  inexhaustible  origi- 
nal mine  of  abundant  treasures  of  beauty  and 
inspiration,  —  not  in  the  sense  of  mere  superfi- 
cial imitators  and  transcriber,  but  in  that  of  the 


136 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 


best  spirit  of  our  own  times,  —  to  strengthen,  tc 
intensify,  to  enlarge  our  own  minds  through  the 
ennobling  influence  of  such  everlasting  and  per- 
fect models.  No  age  has  yet  produced  fine 
works  independent  of  those  productions  that 
preceded  it ;  and  no  age  will  fulfil  its  own  artis- 
tic mission  in  its  full  significance,  by  wilfully 
ignoring  the  great,  the  beautiful  creations  which 
other  ages  before  it  have  already  accomplished. 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  137 


FOURTH  LECTURE. 

The  Opera,  from  its  First  Invention  in  Italy  to  the  Death  of 
Gluck. 

UNTIL  the  close  of  that  great  epoch  in  mu- 
sical history,  marked  by  the  immortal  works 
of  Palestrina,  Orlandus  Lassus,  and  their  con- 
temporaries, the  composer's  highest  endeavor 
has  been  to  adorn  the  Church  with  the  noblest 
and  purest  products  of  his  mind  :  for,  as  I  have 
already  stated,  the  whole  mode  of  thought  and 
life  of  the  different  European  nations  took  root 
in  the  all-embracing  idea  of  the  Church;  and 
art,  especially  music,  emanated  from  the  bosom 
of  the  Church.  Though  secular  music  was  also 
diligently  cultivated  by  different  composers,  to 
serve  as  a  fitting  adornment  for  social  gather- 
ings, its  whole  coloring  yet  bore  the  stamp  of 
the  domineering  church  music :  even  favorite 
people's-songs  (folk-songs),  as  we  have  already 
seen,  were  worked  up  by  the  most  distinguished 
composers  in  their  masses,  and  as  such  became; 
the  property  of  the  Church.  Until  the  close  of 
the  sixteenth  century,  all  forms  which  were  ad- 


138  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

mitted  in  musical  practice  consisted  of  those  in 
many  parts  in  simultaneous  progression, —  in  two 
words,  of  choral  music.  Monody  was  not  yet 
known  ;  at  all  events,  it  was  not  yet  in  general 
use.  In  the  form  of  chorus,  the  single  individ- 
ual, with  his  or  her  own  characteristic  feelings, 
disappeared  among  the  multitude  of  people,  who, 
moved  by  the  same  motives,  by  the  same  inward 
and  outward  causes,  expressed  their  emotions, 
their  feelings,  in  a  collective  manner  :  and,  as  in 
the  middle  ages,  the  rights  of  the  individual  in 
a  psychological,  social,  and  political  sense  were 
scarcely  yet  recognized,  but  entirely  governed 
and  controlled  by  the  State  and  the  Church, 
choral  music,  in  its  different  forms,  was  the  fit- 
ting expression  of  the  artistic  aspiration  of  these 
times.  So  we  find  the  secular  song  in  its  divers 
aspects,  —  the  chanson,  the  German  lied,  the 
glee,  the  villota,  the  villanella,  and  the  charm- 
ing madrigal,  which  represent  almost  exclu- 
sively the  chamber-music  of  the  fifteenth,  six- 
teenth, and  seventeenth  centuries,  always  set 
for  three,  four,  five,  six,  and  more  voices. 

Monody,  the  expression  of  all  those  various 
lights  and  shades  of  individual  inner  life,  was, 
then,  yet  excluded  from  practice  in  musical  art. 
Its  importance  was  not  yet  known  or  felt 
Though  the  Church  admitted  chanting,  —  a  stiff 
and  monotonous  monody.  —  the  favorite  form  of 


HISTORY  OF  MU&LC.  133 

composers  was  the  chorus.  With  the  acquire- 
ment of  greater  freedom  in  the  political  and  so- 
cial situation  of  the  people,  and  with  an  increas- 
ing love  for,  and  need  of,  the  study  of  secular 
arts  and  sciences,  these  latter  more  and  more 
adapted  themselves  in  their  forms  to  the  charac- 
ter of  the  secular  position  they  were  to  fill. 
But  secular  music,  above  all  other  arts,  became, 
by  means  of  this  secular  character,  so  promi- 
nent, that  its  influence,  though  at  first  benefi- 
cial in  many  respects,  proved  in  the  end  to  be 
deteriorating  to  the  sacred  meaning  of  church 
music. 

Music,  born  at  the  altar  of  the  Christian 
Church,  borrowed  at  first  all  its  forms  from  it. 
It  already  played  a  considerable  part  in  those 
early,  yet  loosely  dramatized  plays,  called  mo- 
ralities, or  mysteries,  rudely  arranged  by  priests 
and  monks  from  biblical  or  legendary  subjects. 
They  were  performed  in  the  middle  ages,  even  in 
the  churches,  all  over  Europe  :  for  mankind  has 
a  natural  propensity  for  mimic  representations 
of  actual  or  feigned  characters  or  deeds ;  and 
history  tells  us  that  all  civilized,  and  even 
half-civilized,  nations  have  had  plays  adapted 
to  their  individuality  for  religious  festivities 
and  amusements.  The  musical  portion  which 
formed  a  part  of  these  mysteries  and  morali- 
ties consisted  entirely  of  chorales  and  psalm- 


140  BISTORT  OF  MUSIC. 

odies  or  chants,  taken  from  the  church  ser- 
vice. In  my  lecture  on  the  oratorio,  I  have 
treated  more  fully  of  this  peculiar  custom. 
Though  the  opera  also  took  root  from  these 
mystery  or  miracle  plays,  I  only  touch  this 
ground  here  for  mere  comprehension's  sake. 

The  practical  event,  however,  which  increased 
the  love  for  the  study  of  sciences,  arts,  and 
poetry,  principally  at  the  courts,  and  in  many 
free  cities,  of  Italy,  was  the  conquest  of  Con- 
stantinople by  the  Turks  under  Soliman,  in 
1453.  Though  the  Byzantine  empire  was  ut- 
terly demoralized  under  the  corrupt  and  weak 
government  of  Constantinople,  the  traditions  of 
Greek  and  Roman  greatness  in  art  and  science 
yet  existed ;  and  many  a  devoted  scholar  culti- 
vated them.  Through  the  conquest  of  Constan- 
tinople by  the  Turks,  these  scientific  and  literary 
men  fled  to  other  Christian  countries,  principally 
to  Italy,  and  bequeathed  to  their  new  hornea 
their  learning  and  its  refining  consequences. 
Thus  the  study  of  old  Greek  literature  increased 
rapidly  :  the  past  greatness  of  that  wonderful 
nation  awakened  in  the  bosom  of  many  an 
Italian  student  a  desire  to  see  his  own  nation 
produce  the  same  wonders  in  art  and  poetry  one 
day.  The  Greek  drama,  especially,  was  the 
subject  of  the  closest  study ;  and  to  restore  it  to 
its  former  magnificence  was  the  dream  of  many 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  141 

a  modern  Greek  scholar.  After  again  decipher- 
ing the  dramas  of  the  old  Greek  poets,  the  men 
of  letters  could  of  course  be  no  more  satisfied 
with  the  crude,  and  in  many  respects  coarse,  rep- 
resentations of  the  miracle-plays.  But  to  re-pos- 
sess the  Greek  drama,  in  all  its  beauty  and 
significance,  it  was  soon  found  necessary  to  resus- 
citate the  Greek  music,  as  music  always  made 
an  essential  part  of  the  drama  of  the  old  poets ; 
and  Greek  writers  were  lavish  in  praise  of  the 
wonderful  effects  of  that  music.  To  discover 
this  lost  art  again  was,  no  doubt,  the  deep  de- 
sire of  many  a  modern  Greek  student  and  musi- 
cian. It  was  at  the  same  time  felt  that  the 
monotonous  chant,  and  the  complicated  contra- 
puntal choruses  of  the  Flemish  and  Italian 
church  composers,  could  not  answer  the  wants  of 
the  Greek  drama  or  of  the  drama  in  general. 
In  order  to  understand  the  words  of  the  poetry, — 
to  follow  their  expression  and  meaning  in  all  the 
different  colorings  of  the  drama,  —  a  manner  of 
singing  was  to  be  found,  for  which  a  more  natu- 
ral and  logical  rhythm,  and  a  greater  simplicity 
of  harmony,  were  the  necessary  means.  That 
the  Greeks  possessed  this  music  was  thought 
evident.  But  what  were  these  forms  of  Greek 
music  ?  How  were  those  choruses  arranged 
which  played  such  an  eminent  part  in  the  Greek 
drama  ?  To  solve  these  problems,  nothing  was 


142  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

left  to  consult  on  the  real  nature  of  Greek  mu- 
sic but  the  exaggerated  praises  of  the  o;cl 
authors. 

Though  all  over  Italy  the  different  cities 
rivalled  each  other  in  the  getting-up  of  scenic 
representations  in  which  music  formed  a  con- 
spicuous part,  it  was  principally  in  Florence, 
however,  that,  under  the  reign  of  the  rich  and 
art-loving  house  of  the  Medicis,  music  was  des- 
tined to  take  a  new  direction,  and  to  create  for 
itself  new  and  richer  forms,  sprung  from  this 
searching  into  the  final  supposed  resuscitation 
of  the  lost  Greek  music.  In  Florence,  more 
than  anywhere  else,  the  question  of  re-estab- 
lishing the  Greek  drama  vividly  occupied  the 
minds  of  literateurs,  artists,  and  amateurs :  it 
was  the  theme  of  daily  discussions  at  court  and 
in  literary  circles.  The  house  of  G-iovanni 
Bardi,  Count  of  Vernio,  a  man  of  great  accom- 
plishments, and  poet  and  composer  himself  be- 
sides, was,  among  others,  the  place  of  meeting 
of  those  enthusiastic  Hellenes  who  were  not 
satisfied  with  theoretical  discussions  on  the 
possibility  of  the  re-establishment  of  the  Greek 
draiaa  alone,  but,  being  men  of  deeds,  who  be- 
gan to  put  their  admitted  theories  in  practice. 
The  principal  men  who  frequented  Bardi's  house 
(and  afterwards,  when,  in  1592,  Pope  Clemens 
VIII.  called  Bardi  to  become  his  maestro  da 


BISTORT  OF  MUSIC.  143 

camera,  that  of  Corsi)  were  Vincenzo  Grdlilei, 
Pietro  Strozzi,  Grirolamo  Mei,  Ottavio  Rinuccini^ 
G-iulio  Caccini,  and  some  time  after,  also  Jacopo 
Peri.  These  men  unanimously  proclaimed  the 
means  of  the  musical  forms  then  in  use,  as  in- 
sufficient to  answer  the  requirements  of  a  truly 
musical  drama ;  and  Vincenzo  Galilei,  the  father 
of  the  great  mathematician  and  astronomer,  Gali- 
leo Galilei,  was  foremost  among  them  as  cham- 
pion for  Greek  music.  Galilei  was  a  pupil  of 
the  distinguished  composer  and  theorist,  Zarli- 
no :  he  was  also  an  able  performer  on  the  lute. 
Galilei  wrote  and  published,  in  opposition  to 
Zarlino,  a  pamphlet  in  the  form  of  a  dialogue, 
in  which  Bardi  and  Strozzi  appeared  and  dis- 
cussed the  merits  of  ancient  and  modern  music  ; 
and  of  which  the  conclusion  is,  that  modern 
music  is  only  fit  for  the  uncultivated  masses, 
and  therefore  to  be  despised  by  the  connoisseur. 
Galilei  was  not  yet  satisfied  with  giving  his 
ideas  on  the  nature  of  true  music  to  the  world ; 
but  he  also  composed,  for  one  voice,  the  scene 
of  Count  Ugolino  in  Dante's  "  Inferno,"  and 
performed  it  himself  with  an  accompaniment  on 
the  viola.  Being  much  applauded  in  this  first 
effort,  he  afterwards  set  some  of  "  Jeremiah's 
Lamentations  "  in  a  similar  way  to  music.  This 
form  of  song,  which  Galilei  designated  monody, 
seems  to  have  been  reaih  the  first  of  composi- 


144  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

tion    for  one   voice    independent    of    counter- 
point. 

The  singer  Giulio  Caccini,  called  the  Roman, 
was  one  of  the  most  zealous  disciples  of  the  new 
theories,  and  also  a  frequenter  of  the  meetings 
at  Bardi's  and  Strozzi's.  He  set,  in  imitation  of 
Galilei,  different  poems  to  music  for  one  voice, 
which  he  afterwards  published  in  1601,  under 
the  title  of  "  Nuove  Musiche."  Caccini  gave 
to  his  work  a  long  preface,  in  which  he  put  for- 
ward his  claims  to  the  accomplishment  of  the 
new  manner  of  musical  composition.  He  also 
gave  instructions  concerning  a  good  method  of 
singing  ;  and,  to  judge  from  his  musical  illustra- 
tions, the  art  of  singing  must  have  been  already 
advanced  to  a  high  degree  of  perfection.  An- 
other master,  Ludovico  Viadana,  has  also  great 
claims  to  be  considered  as  one  of  the  first  com- 
posers of  pieces  for  one  voice.  In  1602,  he  pub- 
lished a  number  of  "  Concerti  daChiesa"  for 
one,  two,  three,  and  four  voices,  with  an  accom- 
paniment for  the  organ.  In  the  preface,  he  says 
that  he  composed  these  Concerti  as  early  as  1595  ; 
and,  encouraged  by  his  friends,  he  published  them 
to  serve  in  place  of  the  motets,  originally  writ- 
ten for  five,  six,  and  more  parts,  and  of  which 
one  part  was  sung  by  a  single  voice,  while  the 
organist  played  the  other  parts.  As  the  forms 
of  instrumental  music  were  at  this  period  yet  in 


HISTOfiY  OF  MUSIC.  145 

a  state  of  infancy,  choral  music,,  and,  in  particu- 
lar, madrigals,  were  roughly  adapted  to  the 
wants  of  the  instrumental  resources  then  in  use. 
Viadana,  with  a  more  refined  sense,  perceived 
the  defects  of  such  an  inartistic  custom,  and 
thus  tried  to  substitute  a  better  and  a  more  mu- 
sical manner  through  his  concerti.  These  pieces 
are  in  melodious  quality  far  superior  to  the  mo- 
nodies of  Galilei  and  Caccini :  they  can  be  con- 
sidered, indeed,  as  the  first  musical  productions 
in  cantilene  style,  written  in  a  smooth,  singable, 
and  very  melodious  manner. 

The  greatest  and  most  important  step  towards 
the  establishment  of  musical  drama  was  now 
made.  The  next  thing  to  be  done  was  to 
make  use  of  the  new  means,  in  a  dramatic  work, 
destined  to  consist  of  adequate  music  from  be- 
ginning to  end.  Several  of  the  musicians  who 
were  accustomed  to  be  present  at  the  literary 
meetings  mentioned  before,  excited  by  the 
novelty  of  the  subject,  had  already  tried  to 
realize  the  idea  of  having  the  whole  drama  set 
to  music,  and  aung. 

The  first  whom  history  mentions,  as  having 
tried  his  hand  at  the  new  form  of  drama,  was 
Emilio  del  Cavaliere.  Two  pastorals,  "  II  Satiro  " 
and  "  La  Disperazione  di  Fileno,"  by  the  re- 
nowned poetess  Laura  Guidiccioni,  were  given 

'•  1 1590,  a^  the  court  of  Florence  ;  and  another, 
10 


146  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

"  II  Giuco  Delia  Cieca,"  foUowed  in  1595  :  all 
three  were  set  to  music  by  Emilio  del  Cavaliere, 
and  sung  throughout. 

According  to  Arteaga  ("  History  of  the  Opera 
in  Italy  "  ),  the  musical  part  was  written  in  the 
style  of  the  madrigal,  and  was  full  of  tedious 
artificialities  and  repetitions.  It  seems,  how- 
ever, that  E.  del  Cavaliere's  efforts  in  the  new 
direction  did  not  satisfy  the  modern  Hellenes 
who  assembled  at  Bardi's. 

It  was  reserved  to  another  to  fulfil,  in  a  high 
degree,  the  so  long-delayed  expectations  of  the 
impatient  members  of  the  literary  circle.  I  have 
already  stated,  that,  after  Bardi's  engagements 
in  Rome,  the  meetings  of  the  club,  or  academy, 
were  held  at  the  house  of  Jacopo  Corsi,  who, 
like  Bardi,  entertained  the  same  views  of  the 
necessity  of  discovering  a  new  musical  form,  to 
be  adopted  for  the  so-called  Greek  dramatic  pur- 
poses. It  is  in  Corsi's  house  that  we  meet  J.  Peri 
for  the  first  time.  Peri  was  a  good  musician ; 
and,  through  a  happy  stroke,  he  brought  the  new 
and  so  diligently  sought  for  musical-dramatic 
form  into  existence.  The  poet;-  Rinuccini,  who 
had  already  written  the  intermezzo  "  Combatti- 
mento  d'Appollino  col  Serpente,"  and  which  was 
put  on  the  stage  with  choruses  composed  by 
the  celebrated  madrigal  composer,  Luca  Maren- 
zio,  re-wrote  and  re-arranged  this  intermezzi 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  147 

called  it  "  Daphne,"  and  intrusted  it  to  Peri,  who 
set  it  entirely  to  music,  and  had  it  performed 
at  Corsi's  house.  The  work  received  general 
applause.  Peri  made  use  for  the  first  time  here 
of  the  stilo  rappresentativo,  retitativo,  or  par- 
lante,  —  a  kind  of  musical  form  which  holds  the 
medium  between  well-formed  melody  and 
speech.  It  was  the  beginning  of  a  recitative 
style :  every  one  present  was  delighted ;  and 
no  one  doubted  but  that  the  music  which  the 
old  Greeks  had  used  in  their  dramas  was  thus 
recovered.  In  the  year  1600,  on  the  occasion 
of  the  marriage  of  Mary  de  Medicis  with  Henry 
IV.,  King  of  France,  among  othor  festivities,  a 
new  work  by  Rinuccini  also  was  produced  at  Flor- 
ence, called  "  Euridice,  una  Tragedica  per  Mu- 
sica."  It  was  greeted  by  the  brilliant  assembly 
of  nobles  and  artists  with  still  greater  applause 
than  "  Daphne."  Peri  allowed  Caccini,  who 
had  also  composed  music  to  Rinuccini's  "  Euri- 
dice," to  have  some  of  it  performed  at  the  first 
representation  ;  but  he  afterwards  published  his 
own  setting  of  the  poem. 

In  "  Euridice,"  we  now  possess  for  the  first 
time  all  the  forms  of  our  opera,  though  still  in 
a  merely  primitive  state.  At  the  time  when 
Peri's  "  Euridice  "  appeared  in  Florence,  E.  del 
Cavaliere  had  performed  his  allegoric  drama  in 
Rome,  "  L'anima  e  Corpo,"  of  which  I  have 


148  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

spoken  in  my  lecture  on  the  oratorio.  These 
early  musical  dramas  were  composed  of  simple 
choruses  in  the  madrigal  style,  and  of  musical 
recitation :  in  some  lyric  moments,  the  arioso 
style  already  appeared  at  times ;  but  as  these  first 
opera-composers  attempted,  as  they  fancied,  to 
imitate  the  musical  forms  which  they  believed 
the  Greeks  had  used  in  their  dramas,  the  musi- 
cal part  of  their  works  never  attempted  a  broad, 
well-formed  melody.  It  was  purely  musical 
declamation.  The  instrumentalists  who  played 
the  accompaniments  in  "  Euridice  "  were  placed 
behind  the  scenes.  The  only  instrumental 
piece,  somewhat  resembling  an  air,  and  which 
introduces  a  scene  in  the  first  opera,  consists  of 
fourteen  bars  :  it  is  called  a  "  Zinfonia,"  and  was 
to  be  played  by  three  flutes  (see  the  lecture 
on  instrumental  music).  But  all  the  material 
for  formation  and  construction  of  the  opera  was 
thus  discovered ;  and,  in  the  course  of  time,  an 
art- work  emerged  from  these  precocious  efforts 
which  was  destined  to  play  a  conspicuous  role 
in  the  artistic  and  social  life  even  of  whole  na- 
tions. I  will  here  give  as  specimens  (for  the 
sake  of  comparison),  a  recitative  and  chorus 
from  "Euridice,"  as  composed  by  Peri  and 
Caccini  to  the  same  words. 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 


149 


13.  RECITATIVO.  Peri. 

Or  di  soa-ve plcttro  ar-mato  ed'aurea  ce-tra,  Conlagri- 


*-h£T 


mo  -  so  metro  Canoro  amante  impetra,  ch'ilciel  riveggae 


L_ IWr-W p— J-J 


it-Jl-Wfr 


=Pi 


vi  -  -  va     La    sos  -  pi  -  ra  -    ta        Di  -    -  va. 


j —    N      N  — N — 


=t 


P-*-Ve 


14.  RECITATIVO. 


Caccini. 


Jt^j^Ui^^ 


PPP 


m 


iv 


150 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 


J, 

ry-T^' 
2SF- 


i  js 

^y~~~  .^ 


liM=i 


;EIIIIE 
ner 


CHORUS  of  the  Infernal  Gods.  Peri. 


Poi  chc  gl'eterni  im-pe  -  ri,  Tol-to  dal  ciel  Sa-tur-no  par- 


C\\tv  *     f-^-t     *     •—&—& 

^H^-te->     ;•     p     l?—%r^j? 


=J=^F\ 

5— ^-r-«— «t=a 


tiro     i   figlial-te  -  ri,     da  quest'or-ror  iiot-tur-no 


•*— *— 


HISTORY  Olf'  MUSIC. 


151 


Alma  non  torno'  ma  -  i   del  ciel      a'          dol  -  ci  ra  -  i. 


itN 


1O.   CHORUS  of  the  Infernal  Gods.  Caccini. 


1r1r 


Though  the  newly-discovered  style,  the  stilo 
retitativo,   created  such    a   sensation   all    over 


152  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

Italy,  the  better  composers  looked  upon  it  as  a 
mere  production  of  amateurs  not  very  much 
skilled  in  musical  science  ;  and  of  course  they 
had  no  inclination  to  cultivate  the  new  form. 
But  progress  in  the  new  direction  was  not  to  be 
retarded ;  for,  soon  after,  a  master  of  great  mu- 
sical talent  and  ability  directed  his  attention  to 
the  "  drama  per  musica,"  or  the  opera,  as  it  was 
afterwards  called :  and  this  master  was  Claudia 
Monteverde,  born  1568,  in  Cremona.  Monte- 
verde  was  at  first,  for  some  time,  chapel-master 
it  Mantua ;  and,  from  1613  until  his  death  in 
1643,  he  occupied  the  same  position  at  St. 
Marc's  Cathedral  in  Venice.  Though  the  works 
^rhich  he  composed  for  the  Church  already  bear 
fhe  marks  of  decadence  in  style,  when  com- 
pared with  the  classic  works  of  Palestrina  and  his 
school,  they  yet  give  evidence  of  great  strength 
and  invention  in  the  master.  But,  with  his  ma- 
drigals and  operas,  he  marks  the  beginning  of  a 
aew  era  in  musical  art.  Monteverde  was  no 
.onger  satisfied  to  write  merely  fine  and  scien- 
tific contrapuntal  works  :  his  aim  was  to  render 
jnpressively  the  different  sentiments  of  the 
poem  he  endeavored  to  wed  to  music.  Though 
he  exposed  himself  to  the  severest  criticisms  of 
the  purists  of  his  time,  he  would  not  shrink 
back  from  the  use  of  the  sharpest  dissonances 
to  serve  his  artistic  purposes,  always  directed  to 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  153 

the  dramatic  expression  of  his  nature.  That 
such  a  man  was  needed  to  give  a  solid  form  to 
the  opera,  a  foundation  which  would  secure  it 
permanence,  and  draw  into  his  service  talented 
composers,  is  evident ;  and,  at  the  same  time,  his 
efforts  proved  beneficial  to  the  new  art-form 
and  modern  musical  art  in  general.  Monte- 
verde's  first  opera  was  Rinuccini's  "  Orfeo,"  and 
afterwards  "Arianna"  and  "II  Ballo  delle  In- 
grate,"  from  the  same  poet's  pen.  "  Arianna  " 
seemed  to  have  pleased  the  most,  especially 
the  lament  of  the  deserted  Arianna ;  for  all 
Monteverde's  contemporaries  speak  of  it  with 
the  greatest  admiration.  The  dsamatic  works 
of  this  composer  show  a  great  progress  beyond 
those  of  his  predecessors.  Everywhere  we  see 
the  tendency  to  give  to  the  words  and  to  the  char- 
acters of  his  poem  the  necessary  true  musical  ex- 
pression gained  by  an  effective  use  of  harmonic 
means  and  analogous  rhythm.  As  Peri  himself 
said,  in  his  preface  to  the  printed  copy  of  his 
"  Euridice,"  the  new  manner  of  composing  re- 
quired a  new  form  of  harmonic  accompaniment, 
—  an  accompaniment,  which,  while  at  the  same 
time  it  sustained  the  singer,  would  not  interfere 
with  his  freedom  of  dramatic  action.  Monte- 
verde  went  still  further,  and  used  his  instrument- 
al means  for  the  suitable  characteristic  coloring 
of  different  dramatic  situations ;  and  we  already 


154  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

find  in  his  operas  quite  a  number  of  instru- 
mental pieces,  such  as  symphonies,  ritornellos, 
toccatas,  romanescas,  and  ricercares,  introducing 
and  closing  the  scenes. 

The  opera  soon  became  the  favorite  enter- 
tainment of  the  different  courts  of  Italy,  which 
also  soon  vied  with  each  other  in  the  most  bril- 
liant, dazzling,  fantastic,  and  extravagant  repre- 
ser.tations  and  stage  effects ;  and,  as  we  shall 
see  hereafter,  singers  with  extraordinary  vocal 
powers,  and  the  show  of  brilliant  costumes  and 
machineries,  drove  the  idea  of  the  real  meaning 
of  dramatic  musical  art  in  Italy  entirely  into 
the  background. 

Italian  church  composers,  seeing  the  brilliant 
career  of  the  opera,  took  hold  of  it  with  all 
their  energy ;  and  thus  the  progress  the  new 
art-form  made  was  rapid.  As  there  is  no  room 
here  to  mention  all  the  men  who  appeared  as 
opera  composers,  I  shall  restrict  myself  to  the 
principal  ones,  as  in  their  works  we  perceive 
the  different  phases  and  changes  which  operatic 
forms  went  through  in  the  course  of  time.  Fore- 
most among  those  masters  were  Francis  Colleto, 
called  Cavalli,  Griacomo  Carissimi,  and  Marco  An- 
tonio Cesti.  The  recitative  of  these  masters  is,  in 
some  of  its  parts,  written  with  great  dramatic 
truth  and  variety.  It  already  shows,  as  it  ought 
to  do,  an  entirely  different  treatment  from  that 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 


loo 


of  the  air,  with  which  it  forms  those  necessary 
points  of  dramatic  contrast  and  gradation. 
Though  Carissimi,  as  far  as  we  know,  did  not 
compose  any  operas,  but  devoted  his  energy  and 
knowledge  to  the  forms  of  the  oratorio  and  the 
chamber  cantata,  which  replaced  the  madrigal, 
his  airs  and  recitatives  are  full  of  vigorous  dra- 
matic life  and  spirit.  Here  is  a  recitative  from 
his  oratorio  "  Jephtha."  What  an  immense  prog- 
ress beyond  Peri  and  Caccini ! 


Heu,  heu  mi-hi  !    fi  -  li  -  a  me  -  a,       he     de-ce-  pi-  sti 


a 


In  —  r  N  —  ^r~^^^  —  r 

?  ? 

'  v  -                    P    r             c 

s        fi                   7*          P 

•/      ^       -*•-»•  -^  -*•.  J^ 
me,        fi  -   li  -  a     u  -    ni 

•^  i          i 

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156 


HISTORI   OF  MUSIC. 


pis  -  ti     me,         et   tu    pa  -  ri  -  ter,       heu  fi  -  li  -  a 


&m                 ^5" 

fr£. 

^i*  —  /••?  



x2_ 

,  

me -a,    de   -  cep  -   ta     es,     de    -    cep  -  ta         es. 


A  pupil  of  Carissimi's,  Allessandro  Scarlatti, 
born  in  1659,  bore  a  still  greater  share  in  the 
progress  of  modern  musical  forms  after  the  dis- 
covery of  the  opera.  To  Scarlatti  belongs  the 
merit  of  having  founded  the  Neapolitan  school 
of  music,  out  of  which  came  forth  a  large  array 
of  distinguished  composers  and  singers,  whose 
influence  in  musical  matters  was  felt  till  up  to 
our  modern  times.  Scarlatti  has  written  re- 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  157 

markable  works  in  every  form  of  musical  com- 
position in  practice  in  his  time  ;  and  an  aston- . 
ishing  number  of  these.  He  perfected  the 
recitative,  and  gave  it  classic  value.  His 
arias,  though  wanting  in  breadth  and  largeness, 
are  models  of  fresh,  melodious,  refined  musical 
fornj0.  His  orchestral  accompaniments  are 
graceful,  ncver  overladen,  but  always  effective, 
considering  the  time  in  which  he  lived. 

The  Italian  opera  was  soon  transplanted  to 
all  the  different  counts  of  Europe,  where  it  re- 
mained as  the  exclusive  spectacle  of  princes 
and  nobles.  The  prestige  of  Italian  opera  com- 
posers was  so  great,  that  in  Germany,  in  Eng- 
land, a  composer  could  only  succeed  when  he 
gave  himself  entirely  up  to  the  Italian  style 
of  writing.  France,  however,  though  admit- 
ting the  fundamental  idea  of  the  Italian  opera, 
created  a  work  in  many  respects  materially 
different ;  and,  as  we  shall  see,  this  bore  in  it- 
self the  germ  of  the  modern  musical  drama. 
Cardinal  Mazarin  transplanted  the  opera  into 
France,  and  R.  Lambert  was  the  first  French 
composer  who  composed  an  opera  (about  1660). 
Cambert's  operas  are  nothing  but  crude  efforts, 
reminding  one  more  of  church  psalmody  than 
of  secular  music  for  the  stage  ;  but  his  suc- 
cessor, Jean  Baptist  LtiUy.  born  in  the  year  1633, 
though  an  Italian  by  birth,  identified  himself  so 


158  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

closely  with  the  French  spirit  and  natural  cha- 
racteristics, that  the  existence  of  entirely  French 
opera  is  due  to  him.  He  had  the  talent  to  gain 
the  favor  of  Louis  XIV. ;  and,  with  that,  all  the 
advantages  necessary  to  put  his  idea  about  the 
musical  drama  in  realization.  Lully's  greatest 
merit  was  that  of  having  invented  the  form  of 
the  overture.  Instead  of  the  short  introduction 
generally  employed  by  Italian  composers,  his 
overtures  are  an  elaborate  form  in  two  parts  ; 
the  first  of  which  was  usually  broad  and  of  a 
slow  movement ;  the  second  of  a  spirited  cast, 
habitually  a  fugue :  sometimes  a  miniietto,  or 
another  piece  in  a  favorite  dance  form,  closed  the 
whole.  Lully's  overtures  were  much  admired 
by  his  contemporaries,  and  imitated  in  formal 
construction.  Another  specialty  which  distin- 
guished Lully's  opera  from  the  Italian,  was 
the  introduction  of  the  dance,  or  the  ballet, 
which  the  French  opera  has  retained  as  an  im- 
portant feature  until  our  days.  A  third,  and  a 
not  less  significant  specialty  of  the  French 
opera  was  the  greater  importance  the  chorus 
was  allowed  to  take :  through  this,  it  gained 
more  dramatic  life.  That  which  imparted  to  the 
Italian  opera  its  greatest  charm — the  recitative 
and  the  air  —  is  yet  an  indistinct  chaos  in  Lul- 
ly's operas.  Only  here  and  there  the  simple 
song-form  succeeded.  The  French,  always  anx- 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  159 

ious  for  a  clear  and  distinct  declamation  of  the 
words,  were  yet  insensible  to  a  free,  broad,  and 
well-defined  melody  (cantilena).  Lully's  next 
successors,  such  as  Colasse,  Charpentier,  Cam- 
pra,  cultivated  the  French  opera  in  the  spirit  of 
its  creator  ;  and  it  was  reserved  to  Jean  Philippe 
Rameau,  born  at  Dijon  in  1683,  to  give  it  a  new 
impulse.  Rameau,  who  was  a  fine  performer  on 
the  organ  and  the  harpsichord,  and  a  distin- 
guished theorist,  was  already  fifty  years  old 
when  he  attempted  to  write  his  first  opera 
"  Hippolite  and  Aricie  ; "  and  he  at  once  showed 
his  great  superiority  over  his  predecessors.  His 
melodic  movements  concentrate  to  logical  forms 
full  of  character;  his  choruses  evince  the 
highest  dramatic  effect :  but,  above  all,  the  part 
his  orchestra  has  to  play  is  as  original  as  it  is  at 
times  grand.  In  those  scenes  where  a  storm,  a 
battle,  a  horrible  earthquake,  have  to  be  depicted 
Rameau,  in  spite  of  the  indifferent  state  of  or- 
chestral playing  in  his  time,  produces  powerful 
and  very  characteristic  effects.  Lully's  and  Ra- 
meau's  works,  until  the  appearance  of  the  che- 
valier Gluck,  were  esteemed  above  any  other 
operas  by  the  French  people.  The_  attempt  to 
introduce  the  Italian  opera  in  France  failed  sig- 
nally for  a  long  time  ;  though  the  French  sing- 
ers who  appeared  at  the  Academic  Royale  de 
Musique  could  not  compare  (with  their  exag- 


160  HIS  TORI    OF  MUSIC. 

gerated  and  nasal  singing)  to  the  Italian  vir- 
tuosi who  first  sung  in  Paris. 

The  history  of  the  opera  in  England  is  noth- 
ing but  a  narrative  of  feuds  and  cabals  between 
singers,  foreign  composers,  and  managers.  The 
English  musicians  exercised  little  influence 
upon  the  growth  of  the  musical  drama.  Henry 
Purcell,  born  in  1658,  who  has  shown,  in  the 
music  he  composed  to  plays,  and  in  his  operas, 
so  much  dramatic  power,  so  much  melodious 
freshness,  died  too  young  —  at  the  age  of  thirty- 
seven  —  to  take  an  active  part  in  the  formation 
of  an  original  English  opera-form  ;  and  it  seems, 
besides,  that  he  had  not  the  necessary  oppor- 
tunity offered  him  of  bearing  with  his  whole 
genius  and  musical  accomplishments  on  the 
advantageous  growth  of  this  important  field.  It 
is  much  to  be  regretted,  for  the  sake  of  English 
musical  culture,  that  such  a  profound  talent 
should  have  passed  away  without  finding  a 
worthy  successor  among  his  countrymen.  The 
composers  who  wrote  for  the  English  stage  were 
Italians,  and  the  great  Handel.  French  influ- 
ence, led  by  Cambert,  whom  his  clever  rival, 
Lully,  had  superseded  at  the  court  of  Louis 
XIV.,  was,  however,  of  not  long  duration.  The 
picture  which  the  musical  life  of  London  pre- 
sents at  this  period  is  full  of  instruction  and  in- 
terest. The  wealth  of  the  English  aristocracy 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  161 

commanded  the  greatest  singers  and  composers : 
and,  to  judge  from  all  the  reports  we  possess  of  the 
operatic  representations  of  this  time,  they  must 
have  thrown  into  shadow  even  what  musical 
Italy  could  offer,  with  its  hundreds  of  fine  sing- 
ers and  composers.  But  did  this  preference  for 
foreign  musicians  retard,  discourage,  and  in 
many  ways  wrong  the  indigenous  cultivation  of 
English  musical  art,  and  above  all  that  of  the 
musical  drama,  —  the  opera  ?  This  has  been  often 
asserted,  and,  I  truly  believe,  with  something  of 
injustice.  The  artistic  genius  of  a  nation  will 
work  its  Avay  out,  in  spite  of  religious,  political, 
and  social  obstacles.  Those  men,  who,  through 
their  strong  individuality,  through  their  power- 
ful minds,  mark  an  epoch  in  the  life  of  nations, 
either  in  art  or  science,  are  nothing  but  the  lo- 
gical result  of  the  aspirations  of  those  nations. 

England,  as  I  have  shown  in  a  previous  lec- 
ture, had  an  epoch  in  musical  history  — principal- 
ly at  that  great  Elizabethan  age  —  rich  in  origi- 
nal and  learned  composers,  many  of  whose  vocal 
compositions,  sacred  as  well  as  secular,  are  yet 
the  delight  of  the  connoisseur.  Was  the  musical 
genius  of  the  English  nation  exhausted  after 
the  death  of  Henry  Purcell  ?  Or  was  it  want- 
ng  in  those  requisites  so  indispensable  to  the 
opera  composer,  —  power  and  intensity  of  musi- 
cal dramatic  life,  sensibility  in  passionate  ex- 
it 


162  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

pression,  &c?  If  fine  representations  and  bril- 
liant performances  of  great  works  exalt  and 
stimulate  to  production  the  artist  endowed 
with  knowledge  and  genius,  while  at  the  same 
time  he  is  able  to  form  his  taste  and  to  exercise 
his  judgment  by  such  means,  then  the  musicians 
of  no  other  nation  enjoyed  such  inestimable 
advantages  in  a  higher  degree  than  the  English, 
principally  during  the  whole  of  the  eighteenth 
century.  I  cannot  admit  that  their  efforts,  if 
equal  or  superior  to  those  of  the  foreign  compo- 
sers, —  their  contemporaries,  —  would  have  been 
rejected  or  ignored  by  their  nation  or  by  foreign 
judges. 

The  greatest  of  all  composers  who  have  com- 
posed for  the  English  stage  was  Cr.  F.  Handel, 
born  at  Halle,  in  Germany,  in  1685.  He  re- 
ceived his  first  musical  education  from  the  or- 
ganist Zachau,  at  his  native  city  :  he  afterwards 
went  to  Hamburg,  where  the  renowned  Keiser 
produced  his  works.  There  he  composed  some 
operas,  which  were  already  noticed  favorably. 
From  Hamburg,  where  by  teaching  music  he 
saved  money  enough  to  undertake  a  voyage  to 
Italy,  he  went  directly  to  this  holy  land  of  all 
youirg  musical  aspirants  to  fame.  With  energy 
and  open  eyes,  he  made  himself  master  of  all 
that  Italy  could  offer  him,  as  important  and  in- 
dispensable to  a  thorough  composer.  In  Italy, 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  163 

he  caine  in  friendly  intercourse  with  the  great- 
est artists,  such  as  Allessandro  Scarlatti,  his 
son  Dominico  Scarlatti,  Corelli,  &c.  After  an 
absence  of  three  years,  Handel  came  back  to 
Germany ;  and,  having  made  a  reputation  dur- 
ing his  travels,  the  elector  of  Hanover  offered 
him  the  position  of  chapel-master.  On  the 
invitation  of  some  English  nobleman,  he  visited  _',„*•••' 

England  for  the  first  time  in  1710.     On  this  first.  '.\j&s* 

, 

visit,  he  composed  his  opera  "  Riualdo  "  for  Lon- 
don; but  it  was  not  till  the  year  1712  that  he/  . , 
took  up_his  permanent  home  in  the  English  capi- 
tal, where  he  produced,  in  quick  succession,  work 
after  work :  and,  as  though  his  labors  as  a  com- 
poser did  not  suffice  to  his  energy,  he  also  be- 
came an  opera  manager,  —  an  undertaking  which 
finally  proved  in  many  ways  fatal  both  to  his 
purse  and  to  his  health.  Handel  died  April  13, 
1759.  The  closing  years  of  his  life  were  sad- 
dened by  blindness,  at  first  partial,  and  finally 
complete. 

I  have  only  to  speak  of  Handel's  merits  as  an  -<^*^' 
opera   composer  here.      Though,   through  his^ 
great  genius  and  his  rich  inventiveness,  he  cre- 
ated many  an  immortal  aria  and  chorus,  and 
though  the  dramatic  truth  and  the  power  of  his 
classic  recitatives  are  unsurpassed  by  any  other 
composer,  yet  he  was  not  destined  to  realize  in 
its  whole  signification,  the  ideal  of  a  dramatic 


164  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

musical  work  for  the  stage,  in  which  poetry  and 
music  concur  to  create  dramatic  characters, 
though  fictitious,  yet  full  of  human  reality, — 
characters  that  live  with  apparent  truth  in  oui 
imagination,  heightened  by  the  breath  of  musical 
inspiration,  and  almost  forming  a  part  of  our  own 
existence.  This  he  was  to  realize,  and  in  the 
most  ideal  sense,  in  that  great  art-form,  which 
became  the  culminating  point  of  his  rich  and 
laborious  career,  —  the  oratorio.  Handel  was 
conservative  with  regard  to  the  Italian  opera: 
he  improved  upon  the  forms  of  his  predecessors, 
by  enriching  them  with  the  gifts  of  his  exqui- 
site musical  imagination ;  but  he  never  stopped 
in  his  course  to  introduce  reforms  in  the  con- 
struction of  the  libretto  submitted  to  him  for 
musical  composition.  It  was  the  defect  of  the 
Italian  opera  which  he  inherited ;  and,  in  spite 
of  the  many  pearls  with  which  he  endowed  this 
shadow  of  dramatic  life,  he  could  not  save  it 
from  final  death.  Handel's  operas,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  some  of  the  finest  airs  and  choruses, 
have  sunk  into  oblivion  ;  and,  in  spite  of  the 
great  musical  beauties  they  "contain,  the, rich 
source  of  pure  enjoyment  and  instruction  they 
present  to  the  musical  student,  to  revive  them 
on  the  stage  would  prove  a  decided  failure. 
Handel's  importance  for  our  modern  times  is  to 
-  be  looked  for  in  his  oratorios,  and  not  in  his 
operas 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  165 

Soon  after  the  invention  of  the  opera  in  Italy, 
it  found  its  way  to  Germany.  Rinuccini's 
"  Daphne,"  translated  into  German  by  Opitz, 
and  set  to  music  by  Henry  Schiitz,  was  played, 
in  1627,  before  the  court  of  the  elector  of  Sax- 
ony at  Torgau  ;  but,  the  music  being  lost,  it  is 
not  possible  to  judge  of  its  form  or  of  its  merits. 
There  is  no  time  to  name  all  the  opera  com- 
posers, and  the  works  which  they  composed,  foi 
the  many  large  or  small  courts  of  German  princes. 
With  the  exception  of  the  operatic  performances 
at  Hamburg,  the  whole  state  of  dramatic  musi- 
cal life  in  Germany,  until  Gluck,  is  that  of  the 
reign  of  Italian  singers,  Italian  composers,  or, 
like  Hasse,  Graun,  Naumann,  Italianized  Ger- 
man composers ;  though  their  works  certainly 
possess  many  meritorious  qualities.  At  Ham- 
burg, a  free  and  commercial  city,  full  of  enter- 
prise and  artistic  aspirations,  the  opera,  with 
the  characteristics  of  German  life,  seemed  for 
some  time  to  succeed.  A  man,  gifted  with  a 
fine  talent  for  melody  and  uncommon  facility  of 
production,  composed  opera  after  opera  for  the 
Hamburg  stage,  —  I  mean  ReinJmrd  Keiser,  born 
in  1673.  Reiser's  operas  were  played  on  the 
principal  stages  of  Germany  ;  and  one  of  them 
was  even  brought  out  in  Paris,  which  then 
meant  a  good  deal.  I  have  already  stated,  that 
Handel,  in  his  youth,  wrote  a  frw  operas  for 


-. 

oCu^x/n  *C<2t. 

L66  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

Hamburg  ;  but  the  efforts  of  the  Hambtirgians 
to  establish  a  permanent  opera,  with  German 
artists  and  composers  at  its  head,  were  of  no 
avail :  the  time  was  not  yet  ripe  fur  the  German 
niind  to  step  in,  and  give  the  opera  that  form  and 
meaning  which  it  was  susceptible  of  receiving  in 
future  years.  The  master  who  first  understood 
the  necessity  of  reforming  the  formal  construc- 
tion and  the  ideal  meaning  of  the  then  existing 

o  o 

Italian  opera  was  a  German,  the  Ritter  G-luck. 

As  we  have  seen,  the  opera  is  entirely  an  in- 
vention of  the  Italians.  Italian  composers 
brought  it  to  that  point  of  comparative  perfec- 
tion in  which  other  nations  received  and  admired 
it ;  and  only  after  making  it  thus  a  property 
of  their  own,  were  the  French  and  the  German 
composers  enabled  to  mould  its  forms  to  the 
spirit  and  wants  of  their  own  national  individ- 
ualities. The  Italian  composer's  first  ambition 
is  to  write  beautiful  melodies.  He  proceeds  with 
a  certain  artistic  naivete  to  the  production  of  hib 
works ;  but  being,  to  a  certain  degree,  a  born 

artist,  his  artistic  nature  carries  him  safely  over 

•> 

the  breakers.  He  succeeds  where  the  German 
and  the  French  would  signally  fail,  as  these  latter 
first  stop  to  examine  into  the  propriety,  the  possi- 
bility, of  the  thing ;  and,  as  long  as  the  Italian 
opera  composers  had  their  own  way,  their  reign 
was  supreme  all  over  Europe.  Another  advan- 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  107 

tage,  which  also  aided  them  much,  was  the  gift 
of  beautiful  voices,  which  the  Italians  pos- 
sessed, and  still  possess,  in  so  high  a  degree. 
From  the  earliest  times,  the  Italian  churches 
availed  themselves  of  the  fine  voices  found 
among  their  people ;  and  thus,  through  years  of 
diligent  practice,  a  singing  method  established 
itself,  which  made  the  beautiful  material  still 
more  beautiful  and  effective.  With  the  inven- 
tion of  the  opera,  and  its  general  introduction  on 
all  the  stages  of  Italy,  the  art  of  singing  received 
a  new  impulse.  It  is  with  amazement  that  we 
read  of  the  energy,  the  perseverance,  the  almost 
passionate  application,  with  which  the  Italians 
cultivated  the  art  of  singing  then  ;  and,  as  it 
proved  a  great  source  of  pecuniary  earnings,  in 
order  to  satisfy  an  excessive  ambition,  and  for 
money's  sake,  they  shrank  not  back  from  any& 
trials  in  order  to.  obtain  their  end.  In  its  first 
stadium,  the  opera  offered  gorgeous  costumes, 
ingenious  and  brilliant  decorations,  dazzling 
scenes  of  allegoric  and  fantastic  monstrosities, 
to  the  eye.  The  libretti,  loosely  cut  after  the  ' 
pattern  of  Greek  mythological  plays,  were  writ-  L 
?,ten  and  arranged  for  the  purpose  of  flattering, 
in  exaggerated  terms  and  pictures,  the  patrons 
of  singers,  composers,  and  poets,  the  vain 
princes  and  nobles,  in  whose  presence,  and  for  * 
whose  entertainment,  the  representations  took 


168  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

place.  The  great  passions  —  love,  hatred,  ven- 
geance, heroism  —  were  trifled  with  ;  and  these 
ridiculous  shepherds  and  shepherdesses,  ihe  brag- 
gadocios of  these  pampered  heroes,  the  innocent 
thunders  of  these  impossible  gods  and  goddesses, 
^ari  only  now  excite  us  to  a  smile.  In  the 
course  of  time,  a  somewhat  better  taste  prevailed ; 
and,  instead  of  a  mere  feast  for  the  eye,  the  ear 
hecame  supreme.  Through  the  efforts  of  Scar- 
latti and  his  pupils,  and  through  the  masters  of 
the  Venetian  school,  the  forms  of  the  recitative 
and  the  aria  were  fixed.  Chorus,  if  it  did  not  dis- 
appear entirely,  was  considered  of  minor  impor- 
tance. Yet,  in  spite  of  the  talent  and  influence 
of  such  composers  as  Caldara,  Colonna,  Durante, 
Buononcini,  Gasparini,  Porpora,  Traetta,  Jomelli, 
the  opera  fell  into  another  extreme  :  the  exagger- 
ated admiration  of  purely  musically-fine  execu- 
tion, and  the  mere  physical  beauty  of  the  voices, 
;nade  the  opera  a.nedley  of  arias,  only  fit  for  the 
concert-room.  The  composer  was  the  servant 
of  the  all-powerful  virtuosi.  The  libretto,  with- 
out regard,  or  with  but  little  regard,  to  dra- 
matic truth,  had  to  be  arranged  so  as  to  give  to 
the  best  singers  an  opportunity  to  appear  most 
often,  and  to  display  to  great  advantage  the  fine 
qualities  of  their  voices  and  their  wonderful  ex- 
ecution. Besides,  it  was  necessary  to  have  the 
two  best  singers  perform  duets  ;  and,  if  there  was 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  169 

a  third,  also  trios.  (The  bass  voice,  with  very 
little  exception,  was  excluded  from  solo  parts,  as 
unfit  for  virtuoso  display.)  It  was  therefore 
the  business  of  the  poet  and  the  composer  to 
procure  these  articles.  The  cut  of  the  arias  was 
always  the  same :  the  composer  furnished  the 
canvas,  upon  which  the  virtuoso,  according  to 
his  or  her  fancies  and  abilities,  and  without  re- 
gard to  the  sentiment  which  the  dramatic  situa- 
tion required,  embroidered  those  endless  varia- 
tions of  passages,  trills,  skips,  and  long-sustained 
notes.  That  divine  right  which  the  modern 
composer  claims,  of  having  his  melodies  sung  in 
the  form  and  version  in  which  he  has  written 
them  down,  did  not  then  exist.  On  the  con- 
trary, that  composer  who  best  accommodated 
his  talent  to  the  caprices  of  the  singers  was  the 
most  popular ;  and  his  operas  were  performed  in 
preference.  "  Therefore,"  says  an  old  writer  on 
music,  "  do  we  perceive  an  everlasting  sameness 
in  the  operas  of  to-day.  Any  one  who  has  heard 
or  seen  the  representation  of  two  operas  has 
heard  or  seen  the  scenas  of  a  hundred  others." 
While  the  books  of  that  time,  by  professional 
and  amateur  writers  on  music,  are  full  of  the 
feats,  the  extravagant  beJiavior,  and  the 
salaries,  of  singers,  they  tell -us  little  of  composers ; 
and  that  little  is  not  always  to  be  trusted.  Un- 
der these  circumstances,  we  cannot  help 


170  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

^fa^J 

dering  if  a  composer  yet  succeeded  in  calling 
attention  to  his  work,  and  in  creating  such  pearls 
of  musical  form  as  we  here  and  there  discover 
in  scarce  old  scores,  now  buried  under  the  dust 
of  libraries. 

To  the  Italians  belongs,  to  a  great  extent, 
the  merit  of  having  perfected  the  beautiful  in 
a  purely  melodious  direction ;  but  the  forms  of 
their  recitatives,  their  arias,  their  duets,  and 
trios,  once  established  and  recognized,  they  be- 
came conventional.  Thus  the  originality  of  the 
jjv**'*  composer  was  fettered :  his  art  sank  to  a  mere 
business ;  and  with  it  gradually  sank  the  su- 
premacy of  the  Italian  opera.  The  Italians,  so  rich 
in  beautiful  melodies,  from  the  graceful,  naive, 
and  simple  canzonetta,  to  the  broad  and  heroic 
grand  aria,  were  only  destined  to  bring  this  side 
of  the  musical  drama  to  its  perfection.  But  the 
opera,  as  the  highest  expression  of  that  art-form, 
—  the  musical  drama,  —  in  which  poetry,  archi- 
tecture, painting,  and  the  terpsichorean  art,  en- 
livened by  the  deepest  and  truest  heart-beat  of 
musical  feeling,  concur  to  present  to  the  man  of 
artistic  sensibilities  a  richly  heightened  picture 
of  human  existence  in  all  its  different  shades 
and  lights,  —  a  mirror  of  the  ideal  fancies  of 
man's  soul,  — is  not  the  work  of  one  nation.  The 
Italian  art  has  only  exclusive  importance  and 
signification  for  the  Italian,  the  French  for  the 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  171 

Frenchman,  the  German  for  the  German,  &c.  ; 
but  the  quintessence  of  that  great  spirit  which 
governs  and  inspires  them  all  in  their  art-pro-  2<-i4<" 
ductions,  is  the  goal  towards  which  the  genius 
of  mankind  strive_s.  One  nation  supersedes  an- 
other, every  one  learning  from  the  other  ;  where  * 
one  stops,  another  takes  up  the  thread:  every 
one  is  called  to  bring  a  certain  part  of  the  uni- 
versal work  of  progress  to  its  perfection.  The 
imagination  sees  the  goal  ;  but  will  the  human 
mind  ever  reach  it  ? 

Before  I  speak  of  the  great  reforms  which 
Gluck  introduced  in  the  musical  drama,  let  me 
insert  a  passage  here  by  a  musician,  contempo- 
rary with  Gluck  :  but  the  article  from  which  I 
extract  this  passage  was  written  before  Gluck 
had  brought  out  in  Paris  his  "  Iphigenia  in  Au- 
lis  ;  "  and  Gluck's  greatest  reputation  and  influ- 
ence as  a  reformer  only  commenced  with  his 
success  as  an  opera  composer  for  the  Paris  stage. 
At  the  same  time,  it  shows  the  current  of  thought 
with  artists  and  people  of  good  taste,  judgment, 
and  aim,  at  this  remarkable  period.  "  In  that 
extraordinary  spectacle,"  our  author  says,  "  to 
which  the  Italians  have  given  the  name  of  opera, 
there  is  to  be  found  such  ajmngling  of  the  great/' 
and  the  small,  the  beautiful  and  tasteless, 


'•'  ' 


I  hesitate  in  what  terms  to  write  about  it.     In 
the  best  of  ojreras,  we  see  and  hear  such  stupid 


172  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

and  trivial  things,  that  we  might  think  them  only 
calculated  for  children,  or  for  a  childish  populace ; 
and,  in  the  midst  of  this  revolting  silliness,  pas- 
sages occur  that  pierce  the  heart  with  horror, 
fear,  pity,  or  refined  voluptuousness.  A  scene 
during  which  we  have  forgotten  ourselves,  and 
felt  the  liveliest  interest  for  the  characters,  is 
followed  by  one  in  which  the  same  characters 
strike  us  as  blundering  fools,  awkwardly  trying 
to  astonish  and  alarm  a  vulgar  crowd.  While 
we  cannot  bear  to  recall  the  senselessness  that 
has  disgusted  us  in  the  opera,  we  cannot  help 
remembering  its  charming  scenes  with  emo- 
tion, or  without  wishing  that  artists  would  unite 
to  make  of  this  great  spectacle  that  perfect 
thing  which  it  is  capable  of  becoming.  The 
opera  might  be  the  most  powerful  of  all  specta- 
cles, because  all  the  fine  arts  unite  in  it ;  but  it  is 
a  proof  of  the  superficiality  of  the  moderns,  that, 
in  the  opera,  they  have  lowered,  and  exposed  to 
contempt,  all  these  arts."  * 

The  artist,  so  much  wished  for,  had  already 
put  into  execution  those  means  required  for  the 
regeneration  of  the  musical  drama;  and  that 
artist  was  Gluck. 

Christoph  Willibald  Grluck^  was  born  on  the 
2d  of  July,  in  1714,  at  Weidenwang,  in  Bohemia. 

*  Sulzor:  Theorie  der  sclioenen  Kuensten. 
t  Anton  Schmid:  C  W.  Hitter  von  Gluck,  dessen  Leben,  &c. 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  173 

After  having  received  instruction  Li  music  in 
different  places,  and  his  parents  not  having  the 
necessary  means  to  Drovide  for  his  further  edu- 
cation, he  went  to  Prague,  and  afterwards  to 
Vienna,  where  he  taught  music,  and  sang  or 
played  in  different  church  choirs  and  orchestras 
to  make  a  living ;  while  he  studied,  with  what 
opportunities  chance  could  offer  him,  the  works 
of  recognized  masters,  such  as  Caldara,  Fux, 
Conti,  Porsile.  Through  the  kindness  and  gen- 
erosity of  a  nobleman  who  took  the  young  artist 
with  him  to  Milan,  he  was  enabled  to  receive 
lessons  in  the  higher  branches  of  composition 
from  Samartini.  Having  finished  his  studies 
with  Samartini,  who  initiated  him  in  the  arts 
and  secrets  of  Italian-opera  writing,  he  com- 
posed, with  more  or  less  success,  different 
operas,  according  to  the  customary  traditional 
forms,  for  divers  Italian  stages.  After  a  short 
visit  to  Paris  and  London,  where  he  was  en- 
gaged to  produce  some  of  his  operas,  he  re- 
turned to  Vienna,  which  city  he  made  his  per-  , 
manent  home,  and  from  whence  he  afterwards 
proclaimed  those  great  ideas  of  a  true  musical 
drama  which  effected  a  revolution  in  the  form 
of  opera. 

Gluck's  plan  of  reform,  and  the  necessary 
ability  and  intellectual  understanding  to  carry 
out  this  plan,  must  have  matured  slowly  ;  for, 


174  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

until  the  production  and  representation  of  "  Or- 
feo,"  in  1762,  he  had  written,  like  every  other 
composer  of  his  time,  Italian  operas.  But  the 
peculiar  style  and  the  dramatic  spirit  which  dis- 
tinguished the  composer  Gluck  in  the  latter  part 
of  his  life  must,  at  times,  have  already  appeared 
in  his  Italian  operas  ;  for  the  refined  and  cour- 
teous poet  Metastasio  wrote,  in  1751,  *  "  Gluck 
has  surprising  fire  ;  but  he  is  mad.  He  composed 
an  opera  for  Venice  which  was  very  unfortunate. 
He  composed  others,  with  various  success.  I  am 
not  a  man  to  pretend  to  judge  him."  In  a  letter, 
written  in  1756,  to  the  singer  Farinelli,  the  poet 
says,  apropos  of  the  operatic  representations  for 
some  public  festivity,  "  The  drama  is  my  '  Re 
Pastore,'  set  by  Gluck,  a  Bohemian  composer, 
•  whose  spirit,  noise,  and  extravagance  have  sup- 
plied the  place  of  merit  in  many  theatres  of 
Europe,  among  those  whom  I  pity,  and  who  do 
not  form  the  minority  of  the  folks  of  the  world." 
No  doubt,  while  Gluck  thus  produced  opera  after 
opera  in  the  Italian  style,  he  became  gradually 
aware  of  the  unnaturalness  and  defects  of  the 

_ 

old  form,  as  he  at  the  same  time  noticed  what 
what  was  good  and  essential  for  its  future  regen- 
eration. Burney,  who,  on  a  visit  to  Vienna,  had 
a  conversation  with  Gluck  on  this  subject,  re- 
lates, that  while  in  London,  where  Gluck  pro- 

*  Burney :  Musical  Tour  through  Germany,  so- 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  175 

duced  his  opera,  "  La  Caduta  de  Giganti,"  he 
studied  the  English  .taste;  remarked  particularly 
what  the  audience  seemed  most  to  feel ;  and,  find- 
ing that  plainness  and  simplicity  had  the  greatest 
effect  upon  them,  he  has,  ever  since  that  time, 
endeavored  to  write  for  the  voice  more  in  the 
natural  tones  of  the  human  affections  and  pas- 
sions, than  to  flatter  the  lovers  of  deep  science 
or  difficult  execution.  In  London,  Gluck  was 
surely  also  struck  by  the  beauties  of  Handel's 
works ;  but,  to  carry  out  his  plan  in  its  full 
strength,  Gluck  needed  a  poet  penetrated  with 
the  same  conviction  of  a  necessary  reform  as  he 
was,  and  who  would  understand  and  enter  into 
his  ideas.  This  poet  he  found  in  the  person  of 
Cahabigi.  The  first  opera  of  this  new  and  re- 
markable period  of  Gluck's  artistic  career  was 
"  Orfeo,"  performed  at  Vienna,  the  5th  of  Octo- 
ber, 1762.  Tho  dilettanti  and  the  connoisseurs^- 

j2-ttf&^^* 

were  not  a  little  surprised  at  the  boldness  of  the'1.' 
composer,  and,  at  the  first  representation,  opin-  * 
ions  were  divided  about  the  merits  of  the  new 
style.      In  1766,  "  Alceste  "   appeared,  the  li- 
bretto of  which  was  also  by  Calzabigi.     In  this 
new  work,  Gluck  had  broken  entirely  with  the 
Italian  opera.     In  "Alceste,"  which   he    com- 
posed in  his  fifty-third  year,  the  full  breadth 
and  significance  of  his  gradually-ripened  ideas 
lay  unfolded.    In  the  preface,  written  in  Italian, 


176  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

Gluck  himself  sets  those  ideas  forward.*  "  When 
I  undertook  to  set  to  music  the  opera  of  '  Al- 
ceste,'  I  proposed  to  myself  to  avoid  the  abuses 
which  the  mistaken  vanity  of  singers  and  the 
excessive  complaisance  of  composers  had  intro- 
duced, and  which,  from  the  most  splendid  and 
beautiful  of  all  public  exhibitions,  had  reduced 
the  opera  to  the  most  tiresome  and  ridiculous 
of  spectacles.  I  wished  to  confine  music  to  its 
true  province,  —  that  of  seconding  poetry  by 
strengthening  the  expression  of  the  sentiments 
and  the  interest  of  the  situation,  without  inter- 
rupting the  action,  and  weakening  it  by  super- 
fluous ornament.  I  thought  that  music  ought 
to  give  that  aid  to  poetry  which  the  liveliness 
of  coloring  and  the  happy  combination  of  light 
and  shade  afford  to  a  correct  and  well-designed 
picture, — animating  the  figures,  without  injur- 
ing their  contour.  I  have,  therefore,  carefully 
avoided  interrupting  a  singer  in  the  warmth  of 
dialogue,  in  order  to  wait  for  a  tedious  ritornel ; 
or  stopping  him  in  the  midst  of  a  speech,  in  order 
to  display  the  agility  of  the  voice  in  a  large  pas- 
sage. I  have  not  thought  it  right  to  pass  rapidly 
over  the  second  part  of  the  air,  when  it  is- the 
most  impassioned  and  important  portion  of  it,  in 
order  to  repeat  the  words  regularly  four  times  ; 
or  to  finish  whe.-e  the  sense  is  not  complete,  in 

*  This  translation  is  copied  from  that  in  Hogarth's  Musical  Drama 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  177 

order  to  give  the  singer  the  opportunity  of  show- 
ing that  he  can  vary  a  passage  in  several  ways 
according  to  his  own  fancy.  In  short,  I  have 
endeavored  to  reform  those  abuses,  against  which 
good  sense  and  good  taste  nave  long  exclaimed 
in  vain. 

"  I  have  considered  that  the  overture  should 
make  the  audience  aware  of  the  character  and 
subject  of  the  piece  ;  that  the  instrumental  ac- 
companiment should  be  regulated  by  the  interesty^^ 
of  the  drama,  and  ought  not  to  leave  ajyoicL  inyV^***' 
the  dialogue  between  the  recitative  and  air  ;  that 
it  should  not  break  into  the  sense  and  connec- 
tion of  a  period,  nor  interrupt  the  warmth  and 
energy  of  the  action.  It  was  also  my  opinion, 
that  the  chief  care  of  a  dramatic  composer 
should  be  to  aim  at  simplicit}r.  I  have  accord- 
ingly avoided  making  a  parade  of  difficulties  at 
the  expense  of  perspicuity ;  and  I  have  attached 
no  value  to  the  discovery  of  novelty,  unless  it 
arose  naturally  from  the  situation  of  the  char- 
acter and  the  expression  of  the  poetry :  nor  is 
there  any  rule  of  composition  which  I  have  not 
been  willing  to  sacrifice  to  the  production  of  a 
good  effect. 

"  These  are  my  principles.  Fortunately,  the 
poem  has  wonderfully  favored  my  views.  The 
celebrated  author,  having  conceived  his  own  plan 

of  the  lyric  drama,  in  place  of  flowery  descriptions, 
12 


178  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

useless  compositions,  cold  and  sententious  mo- 
',  - ,  - , -  •  rality,  has  substituted  strong  passions,  interest- 
ing situations,  the  language  of  the  heart,  and 
variety  of  action.  The  success  of  the  piece  has 
justified  my  ideas ;  and  the  universal  approba- 
tion of  so  enlightened  a  city  has  proved  to  me 
that  simplicity  and  truth  are  the  greatest  princi- 
ples of  the  beautiful  in  the  productions  of  the 
fine  arts." 

But  composers  were  slow  to  recognize  and 
adopt "  Gluck's  principles.  It  seems  even  that 
there  were  two  parties  at  the  Austrian  capital,  — 
those  who  adhered  to  the  ancient  form  of  mu- 
sical drama,  headed  by  Metastasio  and  Hasse ; 
and  those  who  represented  the  new  school, 
headed  by  Gluck  and  Calzabigi.  Gluck  himself 
thought  it  necessary  to  defend  his  new  princi- 
ples, in  regard  to  a  true  musical  drama,  against 
the  objections  of  the  critics ;  for  in  the  dedica- 
tory epistle  published  with  the  opera  "  Paride 
ed  Elena,"  complaining  at  the  same  tune  of  the 
indifference  with  which  composers  received  his 
new  endeavors,  he  says,  "  I  determined  to  pub- 
lish the  music  of  '  Alceste,'  simply  in  the  hope 
that  it  might  find  imitators.  I  ventured  to  flat- 
ter myself,  that,  in  following  the  path  I  have  al- 
ready opened,  composers  would  have  endeavored 
to  put  an  end  to  the  abuses  introduced  into  tlie 
Italian  theatre,  and  by  which  it  is  dishonored  ; 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 


but  I  grieve  to  confess,  that,  hitherto,  my  en- 
deavors have  been  in  vain.  The  half-learned, 
the  pretenders  to  taste,  unhappily  too  numerous 
a  class,  and  in  all  ages  a  thousand  times  more 
injurious  to  the  progress  of  the  fine  arts  than 
those  who  are  entirely  ignorant,  have  combined 
against  a  method,  which,  in  establishing  itself, 
destroyed  their  pretentious. 

"  It  was  thought  that  judgment  might  be  pro- 
nounced upon  '  Alceste,'  after  irregular,  ill- 
directed,  and  worse-executed  rehearsals.  The 
effect  which  this  opera  would  produce  in  a 
theatre  was  calculated  in  an  apartment  with  the 
same  sagacity  with  which  some  Grecian  critics 
pretended  to  judge,  at  the  distance  of  a  few 
feet,  of  the  effect  of  statues  to  be  placed  on  • 
lofty  columns.  One  of  these  nice  amateurs,  who 
has  transferred  his  whole  soul  to  his  ears,  will 
find  an  air  too  hard,  a  passage  too  much  marked, 
or  not  sufficiently  prepared,  without  dreaming 
that,  in  that  particular  situation,  this  air  and 
passage  are  the  height  of  expression,  and  pro- 
duce the  happiest  contrast.  A  pedantic  harmo- 
nist will  remark  an  ingenious  negligence  or  a 
deficiency  in  strictness,  and  will  hasten  to  de- 
nounce them  as  unpardonable  violations  of  the  , 
mysteries  of  harmony;  and,  forthwith,  a  chorus 
of  voices  will  join  in  condemning  the  music  as  ,'"-' 
rude,  barbarous,  and  extravagant." 


>  -0  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

Though  Gluck  began  to  introduce  his  reforms 
wiilt)  composing  for  the  stage  of  the  German 
caj  iti  vl,  yet  Germany  was  not  prepared  to  offer 
*-  .an  advantageous  field  for  the  realization  of  his 
principles,  carried  to  their  last  consequences ; 
and  it  is  a  question,  whether  he  ever  could  have 
pursued  his  plans,  had  he  not  found  in  the  indi- 
viduality and  characteristics  of  a  foreign  people 
(the  French)  those  qualities  and  peculiarities 
of  musical  culture  which  proved  favorable  to 
his  own  aims  and  ideas  of  what  the  musical 
drama  should  be.  The  Bailly  du  Rollet,  an  at- 
tache* of  the  French  embassy  at  Vienna,  passion- 
ately fond  of  poetry  and  music,  and  an  admirer  of 
Gluck's,  pointed  out  to  the  composer  the  stage 
of  Paris  as  the  only  place,  where,  under  existing 
circumstances,  success  was  possible.  Monsieur 
du  Rollet  proposed  Racine's  favorite  drama, 
"  Iphigenia  in  Aulis,"  for  their  first  trial,  to  be 
brought  out  on  the  Paris  stage :  he  was  willing 
to  submit  Racine's  drama  to  those  modifications 
required  by  the  musical  composer.  Gluck,  of 
course,  hesitated  not  a  moment  to  accept  du 
Rollet's  propositions ;  and,  witli  the  energy  and 
enthusiasm  of  a  convinced  reformer,  he  threw 
his  whole  mind  into  the  balance,  in  order  to 
make  "  Iphigenia  "  acceptable  to  the  taste  of  his 
future  Paris  audience,  and  at  the  same  time  to 
put  forth  his  new  ideas  in  the  most  perfect 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  18" 

form.     But,  before  we  accompany  Gluck  to  th« 
French  capital,  I  will  briefly  survey  the  situa  •• 
tion  of   the  field  Gluck  was  on  the  point  oi' ' 
entering.   t^J/^*^ 

I  have  already  spoken  of  the  labors  of  Lull} 
and  Rameau,  and  the  importance  their  works  as- 
sumed in  the  history  of  the  musical  drama. 
When  Gluck's  "  Iphigenia  in  Aulis  "  appeared, 
Paris  was  divided  into  two  camps,  the  "  Bouffo- 
nists,"  and  the  "  Anti-Bouffonists."  The  first 
were  the  champions  of  the  Italian  opera,  in 
whose  ranks  we  see  such  writers  as  Rousseau, 
and  the  German  Baron  von  Grimm,  who  asserted, 
in  elaborate  essays,  that  the  French  language 
was  not  fit  to  be  set  to  music,  and  ridiculed  the 
representations  of  French  opera  with  the  most 
cutting  sarcasm.  The  "  Anti-Bouffonists  "  were 
represented  by  those  who  swore  by  Lully  and 
Rameau.  French  composers,  such  as  Dauvergne 
and  Mondonville,  strove  individually  to  cultivate 
the  forms  of  the  opera  in  the  sense  of  Rameau ; 
or  like  Duny,  Philidor,  and  Gretry,  to  realize,  in 
their  operas,  a  fusion  of  the  Italian  and  the  French 
elements.  This  was  the  case  with  the  French 
opera  when  Gluck  engaged  in  it.  The  realism 
of  one-sided  musical  expression  had  here,  as  in 
Italy,  come  to  such  a  pass  that  interest  in  the 
poem  was  almost  lost  sight  of.  The  text-books 
were  mere  consoles  for  musicians  to  display  theii 


182  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

pictures  upon.  The  poet's  office  was  limited  to 
that  of  reproducing  well-known  situations,  with 
a  few  variations,  adapted  to  the  prevailing  taste. 
Rousseau*  falsely  accused  the  French  language 
of  causing  this  tiresome  monotony,  when  it 
should  properly  have  been  laid  to  the  account  of 
a  one-sided  artistic  direction.  The  genius  of  tho 
French  language  opposes  as  much  resistance  to 
the  melodic  breadth  of  ornamental  song  as  the 
Italian  .tongue  is  opposed  to  strong  declamation. 
This  misunderstanding  between  words  and  mu- 
sic had  not  escaped  the  fine  observation  of 
Gluck.  Avoiding  a  fruitless  reconciliation  be- 
tween them,  he  took  hold  of  the  declamatory 
principle  energetically,  and  carried  his  idea  out 
with  iron  firmness,  cutting  off  the  over-luxuri- 
ant growth  of  melody  on  all  sides,  regulating  the 
musical  expression  to  the  thought  and  the  laws 
of  prosody.  To  the  melodic  cut  of  his  arias,  he 
allowed  only  such  liberty  as  the  truth  of  the 
dramatic  expression  demanded  ;  to  his  chorus,  he 
assigned  a  broad  phrase  form,  and  a  sufficient 
polyphonic  treatment.  He  gave  to  the  recitative 
its  full  value ;  in  fact,  revealed  such  a  richness 
of  form  in  the  recitative  style,  heightened  by 
strikingly  dramatic  instrumentation,  that  it  fully 
made  amends  for  a  somewhat  too  spare  use  of 
melodic  charm.  He  also  perfected  the  overture, 

*  In  his  '•  Lettvp«  «nr  la  Musique  franfaise." 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  183 

placed  it  in  undoubted  relationship  to  the  poem, 
and  gave  it  a  peculiarly  dramatic  stamp.  In  all 
these  respects,  Gluck  went  further  than  his 
French  predecessors,  and,  to  a  great  extent, 
completed  in  this  the  labor  of  Rameau. 

Gluck,  with  that  firmness  and  impetuosity  of 
character,  with  that  energy  and  obstinate  perse- 
verance, with  that  enthusiastic  faith  in  his  own 
powers,  —  qualities  so  indispensable  to  an  expo- 
nent of  new  and  reformatory  doctrines,  —  en- 
tered the  battle-field  with  confidence.  The  14th 
of  February,  1774,  "  Iphigenia  in  Aulis "  Avas 
performed  in  Paris.  Though  the  success  of 
the  first  representation  was  not  a  brilliant  one, 
yet  the  victory  was  decided ;  but,  at  the  same 
time,  opposition  from  both  parties,  the  "  Bouffo- 
nists"  and  the  "  Anti-Bouffonists,"  was  insti- 
gated against  the  new  intruder.  Gluck's  star, 
however,  rose  higher  and  higher.  "  Orfeo,'' 
"  Alceste,"  both  re-arranged  for  the  wants  of  the 
Paris  stage,  confirmed  his  reputation.  "  Iphige- 
nia in  Tauris,"  and  "  Armide  "  followed ;  and, 
with  every  new  representation  of  these  works, 
the  supremacy  of  Gluck's  principles  was  con- 
firmed, though  not  without  a  hard  final  struggle 
with  the  Italian  opera.  The  champions  of  Ital- 
ian music,  alarmed  at  the  progress  of  Gluck's 
operas,  and  anticipating  defeat  through  the  very 
principles  of  Lully  and  Rameau,  which  they  so 


184  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

often  had  ridiculed,  and  which  the  genius  of 
Gluck  had  rehabilitated  in  a  new,  more  poeti- 
cal, and  more  acceptable  garb,  called  to  their 
support  that  Italian  composer  of  the  day,  who, 
with  sure  success,  could  alone  be  opposed  to 
Gluck ;  Piccini,  a  composer  of  great  merit,  and 
especially  endowed  with  fine  melodic  talent.  He 
arrived  at  Paris  in  1776.  My  space  will  not  allow 
me  to  enlarge  upon  all  that  was  done,  said,  and 
published  by  both  parties, — the  "  Gluckists  "  and 
"  Piccinists  "  —  to  sustain  their  course  :  suffice 
it  to  say  here,  that  party  feeling  ran  high  ;  from 
the  court  down  to  the  public  in  the  parterre, 
the  two  parties  heaped  bon-mots,  sarcasm,  even 
gross  abuse,  upon  each  other,  and  pamphlets  pro 
id  con,  rained  on  the  passive  spectators.  For 
illustration's  sake,  I  will  mention,  that,  at  the 
first  representation  of  Piccini's  "  Roland,"  the 
composer,  after  assisting  at  the  rehearsal,  and 
seeing  the  animus  of  the  performers,  said  to 
Marmontel,  his  librettist,  "  Every  thing  goes 
wrong."  And  in  the  evening,  when  he  started 
to  be  present  at  the  performance,  he  consoled  his 
alarmed  friends,  —  "  Come,  my  children,"  he  said, 
"  this  is  unreasonable :  we  are  living  with  the 
politest  and  kindest  nation  of  Europe.  If  they 
do  not  like  me  as'  a  musician,  they  will,  at  all 
events,  respect  me  as  a  man  and  a  stranger." 
Though  Piccini  succeeded  temporarily,  time 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  185 

has  since  adjusted  all  those  party  differences. 
Piccini's  works  are  forgotten ;  while  Gluck's  are 
still  performed,  and  attract  the  admiration  of 
the  connoisseur. 

Gluck  died  in  Vienna,  N)v.  15, 1787. 


186  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 


FIFTH    LECTURE. 

/ 

The  Development  of  Instrumental  Music  from  the  Sixteenth 
Century  to  Haydn. 

SONG,  the  earliest  emanation  of  the  world 
of  feelings  and  emotions  within  the  soul, 
was  first  uttered  by  that  musical  organ  which 
is  identical  with  man's  existence,  the  human 
voice.  The  improvement  of  this  organ  through 
careful  culture,  until  it  became  a  highly  artistic 
instrument,  was,  as  far  as  we  know,  the  first  en- 
deavor of  civilized  man  ;  and,  as  man's  highest 
natural  inclination  is  to  devote  his  finest  gifts  to 
the  glory  of  the  Creator,  song  became,  at  an  ear- 
ly period  of  human  culture,  the  ornament  of  all 
temple  service.  It  was,  however,  as  I  have  al- 
ready shown  in  my  previous  lectures,  in  the 
bosom  of  the  Church  that  song  first  created  its 
own  artistic  forms,  in  conformity  with  the  sacred 
office  it  had  to  fill.  Though  old  Greek,  Roman, 
and  Hebrew  authors  are  lavish  in  their  praise  of 
the  astonishing  effects  of  instrumental  music,  as 
used  in  their  several  temple  services,  yet  it  was 
not  till  the  latter  part  of  the  sixteenth  century 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  1P-T 

that  a  really  artistic  signification  was  attached  to 
the  cultivation  of  instrumental  music.  To  judge 
from  the  construction  and  nature  of  the  sacred 
instruments  known  to  the  old  Greeks,  Hebrews, 
and  Romans,  these  instruments,  for  the  most  part, 
must  have  been  only  used  for  dynamic  effects, 
to  enliven  and  mark  the  rhythm  of  the  sacred 
dances  and  the  triumphal  marches,  or  to  regu-aJ***, 
late,  in  Greek  tragedy,  the  motion  of  the  chorus. 
The  Christians,  though  at  first  averse  to  the  mu- 

/     *•        "*7  Nl-4 

sic  and  musical  instruments  of  the  heathens,  ac- 
cepted many  of  the  heathen  customs  by  degrees, 
as  also  their  instruments  ;  for  we  know,  that, 
even  in  some  churches  of  the  Orient,  instrumen- 
tal music  was  finally  introduced.  The  different 
Celtic  races  also  possessed  several  kinds  of  mu- 
sical instruments,  such  as  the  Irish  harp,  and 
Growth,  or  Rotta,  a  kind  of  violin  in  a  very 
primitive  state  of  construction.  The  German 
races,  no  doubt,  also  brought  with  them,  on  their 
migration  to  the  southern  provinces  of  Europe, 
divers  types  of  musical  instruments,  as  used  by 
them  to  accompany  their  songs  and  dances ;  but 
it  was  not,  until  the  general  introduction  of  har- 
mony, that  men,  gifted  witL  musical  talent,  be- 
gan, by  means  of  new  inventions,  to  perfect  the 
mechanism  of  different  instruments,  and  were 
thus  enabled  to  exploit  the  resources  of  these 
instruments  for  more  artistic  purposes.  Instru- 


188  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

mental  music,  if  not  destined  for  church  service, 
was,  however,  for  a  long  time  despisedjyy  pro- 
fessional composers:  its  crude  execution  was 
therefore  left  entirely  to  uneducated  men  and 
women.  In  some  parts  of  Germany  and  France, 
these  musicians  formed  regular  corporations : 
they  had  their  own  constitution,  which  was 
sometimes  sanctioned  by  the  king  or  the  count 
in  whose  domains  they  resided.  They  conse- 
quently enjoyed  the  exclusive  privilege  of  play- 
ing at,  and  also  furnishing  music  for,  the  different 
festivities  of  the  inhabitants  of  cities  and  vil- 
lages. The  head  of  the  corporation  was  called 
the  "  King  of  the  Pipers,"  or  the  "  King  of  the 
Fiddlers."  Thus,  in  the  middle  ages,  we  have 
the  jongleurs  and  minstrels,  —  a  class  of  people 
very  little  respected,  but  welcomed  everywhere 
for  their  music,  their  songs,  and  their  jests.  The 
pieces  they  played  were  no  doubt  folk-songs  in 
the  different  dance  forms,  adapted  to  the  instru- 
ments then  in  use.  The  music-books  of  the  six- 
teenth century  contain  many  pieces  to  be  played 
as  dances ;  such  as  the  passamezzo,  the  gaillard, 
,'  the  saltarello,  the  pavane,  the  imperial,  the 
bransle,  &c. ;  but  these  dances  were  all  tunes  of 
.,  favorite  folk-songs  :  they  were  arranged  for  the 
organ,  the  harpsichord,  the  lute,  the  guitar,  the 
viols,  and  other  instruments.  The  manner  of 
expressing,  by  means  of  alphabetic  letters,  the 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  189 

sounds  given  by  the  strings  or  stops  of  the  dif- 
ferent instruments  was  called  tabulatura,  or 
tablature :  it  is  what  we  to-day  denominate 
score. 

Although  a  great  number  of  various  musical 
instruments  were  already  known,  and  in  use,  in 
the  sixteenth  century,  yet  instrumental  music 
made  but  slow  progress  ;  while  vocal  music  had 
already  attained  at  this  time,  a  high  degree  of 
perfection.  It  is  true,  that,  though  acquainted 
with  the  principal  instruments  then  in  prac- 
tice, composers  directed  all  their  attention  to 
the  composition  of  choral  music.  If,  besides 
dance  music,  other  pieces  of  a  more  serious  char- 
acter were  to  be  played,  the  musicians  selected 
such  as  were  written  in  polyphonic  style,  like 
motets,  madrigals,  and  also  folk-songs,  set  in 
contrapuntal  manner.  Thus,  we  often  read  on 
the  title-pages  of  the  publications  of  motets, 
madrigals,  and  other  secular  songs,  —  that  they 
may  be  sung  and  also  played  on  different  in- 
struments, —  da  cantare  e  sonare.  This  proves 
that  instrumental  music,  in  its  forms  as  inde- 
pendent of  choral  QT  vocal  music,  is  entirely 
a  modern  art,  not  over  two  hundred  years  old. 
The  direction  which  musical  art  takes  in  our 
time  is  vastly  different  from  that  which  it  fol- 
lowed in  the  sixteenth  century.  Then  the  cul- 
tivation of  vocal  music  was  the  chief  object  of 


190  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

composers  :  to-day,  and  principally  since  the  ap- 
pearance of  the  three  great  Vienna  masters, 
Haydn,  Mozart,  and  Beethoven,  instrumental 
music  has  obtained  the  ascendency. 

Vocal  and  instrumental  music  aim  at  the  same 
sesthetical  purpose :  they  are  both  the  instru- 
mentalities of  expressing,  by  means  of  adequate 
ideal  artistic  forms,  those  feelings,  those  emo- 
tions of  joy  and  sorrow,  which  move  man's  soul. 
Vocal  music  found  its  first  and  gradual  per- 
fection in  connection  with  poetry :  the  musical 
imagination  of  man  was  thus  assisted  by  the 
support  of  decidedly-expressed  sentiments.  In 
the  course  of  time,  and  by  means  of  long  ex- 
perience, a  vocabulary  established  itself  of  fixed 
melodious  forms,  corresponding  with  those  of 
mery  language,  for  the  expression  of  man's  ideal 
inner  life.  Only  then,  when  this  important  SBS- 
thetical  ground  was  gained,  was  it  possible  for 
purely  instrumental  music  to  create  its  own  pe- 
culiar forms  on  the  basis  of  those  vocal  ones. 
In  adapting  and  arranging  vocal  pieces  for  their 
instruments,  musicians  already  strove,  and  were 
also  in  many  cases  forced,  to  observe  as  much  as 
possible  the  peculiar  construction  which  influ- 
enced the  technical  treatment  of  these  instru- 
ments. In  runnmg  through  the  score  of  a  mo- 
tet or  a  madrigal,  as  originally  composed  for 
voices  and  then  arranged  for  instruments,  the 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  191 

difference  is  apparent.  The  facility  of  sustain- 
ing, as  much  as  the  composer's  idea  required  it, 
the  various  tones  which  composed  a  melody,  — 
a  peculiarity  of  the  human  voice,  —  was  out  of 
the  question,  when  these  same  melodies  had  to 
be  played  on  the  lute,  the  harpsichord,  or  the 
viols,  then  the  favorite  instruments.  Rhythm 
and  motion  being  the  predominant  character  of 
these  instruments,  the  players  supplied  the  want 
of  long-sustained  notes  by  varying  the  principal 
tones  of  the  melody.  This  manner  of  arran- 
ging and  varying  consisted  of  different  orna- 
ments, such  as  trills,  turns,  passages,  tremolos, 
or  by  diminishing  a  long  note  into  a  correspond- 
ing number  of  notes  of  smaller  value.  This 
way  of  varying  a  melody,  or  note-splitting,  was 
also  called  diminution,  or  coloring ;  hence,  the 
expression,  "  coloratura,"  as  applied  to  vocal 
execution.  The  diminution,  or  coloring,  was, 
however,  diligently  exercised  by  the  human 
voice ;  and  the  pieces  for  the  organ  of  this  pe- 
riod prove  that  the  organists  also  delighted  in 
this  manner  of  playing.  Vincenzo  Galilei,  who 
played  such  a  conspicuous  part  in  the  invention 
of  the  opera,  complains  of  these  musical  "  em- 
broiderers "  of  his  time,  who,  by  their  changes 
and  divisions,  so  disguised  every  melody  that  it 
was  no  longer  re  cognizable,  "  but  resembled  the 
representations  jf  the  first  painters  in  oil,  which 


192  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

required  the  names  to  be  written  under  them  for 
the  convenience  of  the  spectator,  who,  without 
such  assistance,  would  have  been  unable  to  dis- 
tinguish a  rose  from  a  lily,  a  sparrow  from  a 
linnet,  a  lobster  from  a  trout."  But,  neverthe- 
less, the  peculiar  material  out  of  which  instru- 
mental music  was  to  build  up  its  forms,  was 
thus  gradually  gained. 

There  is  no  time  here  to  trace  the  origin,  and 
follow  up  the  gradual  perfection,  of  every  in- 
strument I  shall  mention  in  this  lecture.  I  will 
start  from  that  point  where  each  relative  instru- 
ment was  already  made  fit  to  serve  some  artistic 
purpose. 

The  instrument,  which,  among  others,  seems  to 
have  received  the  first  careful  attention  of  com- 
posers, was  the  organ.  Its  gradual  perfection 
went  hand  in  hand  with  that  of  counterpoint ; 
and  history  tells  of  a  great  organist,  Francesco 
Landino,  who  lived  in  the  fourteenth  century, 
in  Venice ;  but  as  none  of  his  compositions  for 
the  organ  have  come  down  to  us,  they  must 
have  been,  to  judge  from  the  awkward  state  of 
the  key-board  of  the  organ,  just  as  awkward  and 
crude  efforts.  Of  the  so-much  praised  organists, 
Bernhard,  the  German  (to  whom  the  invention 
of  the  pedal  is  probably  wrongly  attributed),  and 
Antonio  Scarcialupi,  who  lived  in  the  fifteenth 
century  in  Italy,  we  do  not  know  much  more. 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 


11):] 


Of  greater  importance  for  us  is  Conrad  Pau- 
mann  of  Nuremberg,  who  also  lived  in  the  fif- 
teenth century.  Though  born  blind,  he  had 
made  himself  master  of  most  of  the  instruments 
in  use  at  his  time.  His  pieces  for  the  organ,  of 
which  quite  a  number  still  exist,  are  written  in 
a  very  fluent  counterpoint,  in  two  and  three 
parts.  These  pieces  also  give  evidence  of  the  ad- 
vanced state  of  contrapuntal  art  at  this  epoch  in 
Germany,  being  the  oldest  known  specimens 
of  pieces  for  keyed  instruments :  they  also  show, 
that  there  already  existed  a  marked  difference 
between  the  manner  of  "  coloring  "  for  the  voice 
and  that  practised  on  instruments.  Here  are 
two  of  Paumann's  pieces,  as  deciphered  by  TJen- 
ry  Bellermann. 


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194 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 


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HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  185 

«-i^ 

The  names  of  quite  a  number  of  organists, 
contemporaries  of  Paumann,  and  who  were  then 
more  or  less  celebrated,  have  been  preserved ; 
which  is  also  a  proof  that  the  art  of  master  Con- 
rad was  already  generally  cultivated  through 
Germany.  I  will  mention  Paul  Hofhaimer,  Wil- 
helm  Legrant,  Paumgartuer,  George  von  Put- 
tenberg :  other  German  masters  who  lived  at  a 
later  period  were  Arnold  Schlick,  Jacob  Buus, 
Ammerbach,  Bernhard  Schmid,  and  Jacob  Paix. 
These  masters,  though  their  compositions  pre- 
sent for  the  most  part  nothing  but  the  before- 
mentioned  art  of  varying  or  splitting  notes, 
laid  the  first  foundation  of  that  great  school  of 
German  organists  of  which  J.  S.  Bach  forms 
the  culminating  point. 

The  religious  and  social  life  of  the  people  be- 
ing in  the  fourteenth,  fifteenth,  and  sixteenth 
centuries  so  intimately  connected,  the  forms  of 
musical  art  admitted  by  the  Church,  also  exer- 
cised their  influence  over  those  destined  for 
amusement  in  the  home  circle  ;  and  thus  the  or- 
gan was  to  be  found  in  the  house  of  the  private 
citizen  as  well  as  in  the  church.  The  art  of  or- 
gan-playing, and  the  cultivation  of  instrumental 
music  in  general,  was,  of  course,  diligently  pur- 
sued by  the  great  masters  of  counterpoint,  —  the 
Netherlander.  The  most  celebrated  among 
them  seems  to  have  been  John  Peter  Sweling,  or- 


IOC  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

ganist  in  Amsterdam,  born  in  1540  -}-  1622. 
His  reputation  was  so  great,  that  from  all  parts 
of  Germany  young  organists  came  to  profit  by 
his  lessons.  He  was  called  in  Hamburg  the 
"organist's  manufacturer."'  Several  great  mas- 
ters, distinguished  as  composers  of  fine  chora1 
works,  as  well  as  skilled  organists,  lived  in  Italy 
at  this  epoch.  I  will  mention  Girolamo  Para- 
bosco,  Andrea,  and  Giovanni  G-abrieli,  Merula, 
Frescobaldi  (called  the  father  of  true  organ-play- 
ing), and  Pasquini.  All  these  masters  contrib- 
uted in  a  considerable  degree  to  the  perfection 
of  the  forms  of  organ  music,  as  also  of  instru- 
mental music  in  general ;  and  many  of  their 
pieces,  such  as  toccatas  and  fugues,  yet  possess 
merit.  The  toccata  seems  to  have  received  the 
greatest  attention  from  these  masters.  Its  form, 
no'  doubt,  has  grown  up  with  those  short  pieces, 
at  first  of  no  distinct  form,  —  short  improvisa- 
tions, as  I  should  call  them,  —  such  as  fantasies, 
ricereari,  capricci,  contrapunti,  introduzioni,  can- 
zone, which  were  played  before  a  fugue  or  a  mo- 
tet ;  or,  as  an  old  author  says,  "  before  the 
organist  or  cembalist  plays  a  fugue  or  a  motet, 
he  will  strike  simply,  and  in  a  plain  manner,  a 
few  chords  «and  passages."  The  toccata  has  al- 
ways preserved  the  style  of  free  improvisation. 
The  more  developed  melodious  form  gives  place 
in  it  to  motives  of  lively  passages  and  broken 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  197 

chords,  —  arpeggios ;  and  though  worked  up  with 
all  the  art  of  counterpoint  (as  are  those  of  J.  S. 
Bach),  liveliness  and  spirited  motion,  reminding 
us  of  instantaneous  improvisation  and  inspira- 
tion, are  its  distinguishing  features.  The  old 
masters  must  have  used  the  above-mentioned  ex- 
pressions, fantasia,  ricercare,  &c.,  which  invaria- 
bly convey  to  our  mind  a  piece  in  this  or  that 
distinct  form,  without  attaching  to  them  as  much 
difference  of  meaning  as  we  do ;  at  least,  to 
judge  from  the  construction  of  their  pieces,  com- 
posed for  the  organ  or  the  harpsichord.  Ricer- 
care,  or  ricercata,  for  instance,  means  a  master 
fugue,  —  an  art  fugue  ;  that  is  to  say,  a  fugue  in 
which  all  intricacies  of  double  counterpoint  and 
the  canon  find  a  place  :  while,  with  those  old  or- 
ganists, it  meant  simply  a  piece  in  the  style  of  a 
fantasie  or  extemporization. 

The  keyed  instruments  in  use  in  the  sixteenth 
century,  and  out  of  which  our  square,  upright, 
and  grand  piano-fortes  sprung,  were  the  virgi- 
nal, the  spinet,  the  clavichord,  and  the  harpsi- 
chord. Instead  of  the  hammer  which  strikes 
the  strings  in  our  modern  piano-forte,  the  key  in 
those  old  instruments  raised  little  wooden  jacks, 
furnished  with  a  crow-quill,  or  with  a  piece  of 
brass  or  steel,  which  struck  the  wires.  The 
sound  which  these  instruments  produced, 
though  thin,  was  yet  free  arid  clear  :  altogether, 


198  HISTORY  OF  .\fUSIC. 

it  had  something  dreamy  and  romantic  about  it ; 
and,  when  played  softly,  a  good  deal  of  the 
eeolian  harp.  The  virginal,  "  the  instrument 
for  the  ladies,"  as  an  old  writer  calls  it,  was 
much  in  favor  at  the  court  of  Queen  Elizabeth 
of  England.  The  queen  herself  seems  to  have 
been  a  good  performer  on  this  instrument.  She 
was  very  desirous  of  gaining  supremacy  as  a  vir- 
ginal player  over  Queen  Mary  of  Scotland,  and 
practised  diligentl}*  with  that  object.  Sir  James 
Melvil  tells*us,  that  one  day,  while  at  the  queen's 
court,  Lord  Hursden  drew  him  up  to  a  quiet  gal- 
lery, where  he  might  hear  the  queen  play  upon 
the  virginal.  "  After  I  had  barkened  a  while," 
he  says,  "  I  took  by  the  tapestry  that  hung  be- 
fore the  door  of  the  chamber,  and,  seeing  her 
tjack  was  toward  the  door,  I  entered  within  the 
chamber,  and  stood  a  pretty  space,  hearing  her 
play  excellently  well ;  but  she  left  immediately, 
GO  soon  as  she  turned  about  and  saw  me.  She 
appeared  to  be  surprised  to  see  me,  and  came 
forward,  seeming  to  strike  me  with  her  hand, 
alleging,  she  used  not  to  play  before  men,  but 
when  she  was  solitary,  to  shun  melancholy.  She 
inquired  whether  ray  queen  (Queen  Mary)  or 
she  played  best.  In  that,  I  found  myself  obliged 
to  give  her  the  praise."  A  volume  of  pieces 
called  "  Queen  Elizabeth's  virginal  book  "  is  still 
preserved.  The  compositions,  consisting  of  pre- 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  199 

luclos,  dance  tunes,  and  variations  on  popular 
songs,  were  written  by  Tallis,  Bird,  Farnaby,  and 
Dr.  Bull.  Orlando  Gibbons  also  composed  a 
considerable  number  of  pieces  for  the  virginal 
and  the  organ.  To  judge  from  these  pieces, 
which  are  most  of  them  very  dry  exercises,  all 
these  English  composers  must  have  already  pos- 
sessed remarkable  facility  in  mastering,  on  the 
virginal,  the  harpsichord,  and  the  organ,  all 
sorts  of  difficulties ;  and  Dr.  John  Bull  especi- 
ally, through  his  extensive  powers,  must  have 
been  a  kind  of  Thalberg  at  this  early  epoch  of 
instrumental  music. 

One  of  the  most  favorite  instruments  of  all 
nations,  particularly  during  the  sixteenth  and 
seventeenth  centuries,  was  the  lute.  Though  it 
is  long  out  of  practice,  and  forgotten,  our  poets, 
perhaps  for  the  sake  of  its  euphonious  name, 
still  dream  of  its  romantic  qualities.  I  will, 
therefore,  give  a  somewhat  detailed  explanation 
and  account  of  the  nature  of  this  instrument. 
The  shape  of  the  body  of  the  lute  was  not  un- 
like that  of  a  turtle.  Attached  to  it  was  a  long 
neck,  inlaid  with  nine  frets,  which  marked  the 
intervals,  and  over  which  the  strings  ran  :  at  the 
extremity  of  the  neck  was  attached '  the  head, 
or  the  cross  into  which  the  screws,  destined  to 
tune  the  strings,  were  fixed.  The  instrument 
was  not  unlike  the  guitar,  but  it  had  more 


200  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

strings,  —  from  eight  to  twenty-four.  I  extract 
from  Mace's  "  Musik's  Monuments"  the  follow- 
ing passage,  which  will  convey  to  you  an  idea 
of  the  manner  in  which  it  was  played.  Mace 
was  a  passionate  lover  of  the  lute,  and  placed  it 
above  all  other  instruments.  "  Now,  as  to  this 
order,"  he  says,  "  first  set  yourself  down  against 
a  table,  in  as  becoming  a  posture  as  you  would 
£-1**  choose  to  do  for  your  best  reputation.  Sit  up- 
right and  straight ;  then  take  up  your  lute, 
r  holding  it  in  a  slanting  position,  the  head 
erected  against  your  left  shoulder  and  ear.  Lay 
your  left  hand  down  upon  a  table,  and  your 
right  arm  over  the  lute,  so  that  you  may  set  your 
little  finger  down  upon  the  body  of  the  lute, 
just  under  the  bridge,  against  the  treble  or 
second  string,  and  then  keep  your  lute  stiff,  and 
strongly  set,  with  its  lower  edge  against  the 
table  edge  ;  and  so,  holding  it  firmly,  cause  it  to 
3tand  steady  and  strong,  so  that  a  bystander  can- 
not easily  draw  it  from  you.  This  is  the  most 
becoming,  steady,  and  beneficial  posture."  The 
instrument  must  have  been  of  a  very  fragile  con- 
struction ;  for,  says  our  old  author,  "  You  must 
know  that  once  in  a  year  or  two,  if  you  have 
not  very  good  luck,  you  will  be  constrained  to 
have  its  body  taken  off:  because,  being  so  very 
thin,  and  only  supported  with  six  or  seven  small 
weak  bars,  and  by  the  constant  stretch  of  tli6 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  201 

Btrings  (which  is  a  great  strength),  the  body 
will  often  sink  in ;  and  then  your  lute  will  jar, 
and  grow  unpleasant."  Mattheson,  the  contem- 
porary of  Handel,  and  a  prolific  writer  on  musical 
subjects,  did  not  think  very  favorably  of  the 
lute.  "  The  flattering  lute,"  he  says  (in  his 
'  Neu-eroeffnetes  Orchester ' ),  "  has  really  more 
partisans  than  it  deserves.  The  insinuating 
sound  of  this  deceiving  instrument  always  prom- 
ises more  than  it  can  keep ;  and,  before  one 
knows  the  strong  and  weak  points  of  a  lute,  one 
is  inclined  to  think  that  there  cannot  exist  in 
this  world  any  thing  more  charming  :  but,  after  a 
closer  acquaintance  with  this  siren  among  instru- 
ments, one  will  soon  be  convinced  of  its  great 
defects,  one  of  which  is  the  everlasting  tuning ;  .<.?&? 
for,  if  a  lute-player  reaches  the  age  of  eighty, 
he  assuredly  has  spent  sixty  years  of  his  life  in 
tuning.  In  fact,  it  has  been  said,  that  it  costs 
the  same  money  to  keep  a  lute  in  Paris  as  a 
horse."  This  instrument,  in  spite  of  its  defects, 
was  held  in  great  favor  by  amateurs  and  musi- 
cians until  the  latter  part  of  the  last  century, 
when  it  disappeared  entirely.  The  instrument 
theorbe  is  a  large  lute. 

Though  it  was  already  the  custom,  in  the  six- 
teenth century,   to  unite   the    sound  of  diffei- 
ent  musical  instruments  with  that  of  the  human  <^* 
voice,  in  order  to    perform   the  various  voca] 


202  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

pieces  for  the  church,  as  well  as  in  private  chap- 
els of  kings  and  princes,  and  also  to  increase 
the  resonance  and  to  enrich  the  body  of  the 
sound,  yet  it  was  not  until  the  middle  of  the 
seventeenth  century  that  the  accompanying  of 
purely  instrumental  music  received  more  atten- 
tion, and  became  of  more  importance.  The  dif- 
ferent instruments  in  use  at  this  epoch  were 
only  added  at  first  to  double  the  vocal  parts. 
There  were  then  no  extra  parts  written  for  the 
instrumental  performers:  they  transposed  and 
arranged  the  vocal  parts  for  their  instruments  in 
the  best  way  they  could.  To  judge  from  the 
character  of  these  instruments  and  the  powers 
of  the  performers,  such  a  performance  must 
have  been  a  curious  cacophony.  If  a  singer 
desired  to  sing  alone,  and  as  melodious  pieces 
for  one  voice  were  not  yet-  composed,  he  would 
choose  a  piece  written  in  a  contrapuntal  style, 
sing  the  upper  part  as  the  air,  and  play,  on  a 
guitar  or  'a  lute,  the  other  parts  as  an  accom- 
paniment. With  the  invention  of  the  musical 
drama,  the  opera,  and  its  formal  perfection,  in- 
strumental music  began  to  emancipate  itself 
from  the  fetters  of  custom,  as  a  mere  double  of 
the  original  vocal  parts.  In  the  recitative  and 
the  airs,  it  was  soon  found  necessary  to  sustain 
the  singer  through  a  careful  and  direct  harmonic 
accompaniment ;  while,  at  the  same  time,  it  wad 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  '203 

of  the  greatest  consequence  not  to  interfere  with 
the  freedom  of  his  dramatic  action.  Thus,  in- 
struction to  this  effect  had  to  be  given  by  the 
composer  ;  and  consequently  separate  and  expli- 
cit parts  had  also  to  be  written  for  the  accom- 
panying instrumentalists.  Short  pieces,  called 
symphonies,  were  used  to  introduce  the  differ- 
ent scenes  ;  and  similar  pieces,  called  ritornellos, 
were  played  between  or  at  the  close  of  the  parts. 
These  were  not  pieces  of  a  fixed  form,  but 
merely  improvisations.  Favorite  dance  tunes 
were  also  frequently  used  for  the  same  purpose. 
The  instruments  which  are  said  to  have  com- 
posed the  orchestra  of  the  first  opera,  the  "  Eu- 
ridice  "  by  Rinuccini,  were  a  harpsichord,  a  large 
guitar,  a  viol,  a  large  lute,  and  flutes.  Though 
some  modern  authors  do  not  mention  any  other 
instruments  used  in  this  first  opera,  it  is  very 
probable,  thai,,  to  give  more  eclat  to  the  perform- 
ance of  his  work,  which  was  played  on  such  a 
great  occasion  as  the  marriage  of  the  King  of 
France  with  a  daughter  of  the  house  of  Medi- 
cis,  Rinuccini  used  all  the  instrumental  resources 
then  at  his  disposal ;  for  we  find  that  the  num- 
ber of  instruments  used  at  some  previous  festivi- 
ties in  Florence  was  very  considerable.  Forty 
different  ones  are  mentioned,  which  had  to  play 
the  accompaniments  and  the  ritornellos  on  a 
grand  occasion  in  1565.  Here  is  the  longest  in- 


£04 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 


strumental  piece,  which  introduces  a  scene  in 
Rinuccini's  "  Euridice : "  it  is  for  three  flutes, 
and  consists  of  fourteen  bars. 


To  the  masters  of  the  Venetian  school  of  mu- 
sic, and  foremost  among  them  to  Giovanni  G-a- 
Irieli  *  and  Claudio  Monteverde,  belongs  most  of 


*  K.  von  Winterfeld:  Johannes  Gabriel!  und  sein  Zeitalter. 


HIS  TO  III'  OF  MUSIC.  205 

the  credit  of  having  in  a  certain  degree  created 
new  and  independent  forms  for  instrumental 
music,  and  also  of  having  given  a  truer  and,  at 
the  same  time,  a  more  effective  style  of  instru- 
mental accompaniment.  Thus  the  line  of  de- 
marcation between  choral  and  instrumental  mu- 
sic began  to  be  more  distinct ;  yet  each  of  them 
lent  to  each  other  more  support,  more  effective 
meaning.  In  Monteverde's  operas,  we  alread}- 
find  quite  a  number  of  independent  instrumen- 
tal pieces,  such  as  symphonies,  ritornellos,  toc- 
catas, romanescas,  maurescas,  ricercares.  The 
desire  of  employing  different  instrumental  means 
for  the  characteristic  and  dramatic  coloring  of 
the  various  scenic  situations  is  apparent  in  all 
his  dramatic  compositions,  particularly  in  the 
battle -scene  between  Tancred  and  Clorinda, 
from  Tasso's  "  Jerusalem  Delivered,"  performed 
in  1624.  It  is  the  scene  which  describes  the  en- 
counter of  Tancred  with  Clorinda,  whom  Tan- 
cred meets  in  the  night,  and,  armed  as  she  is, 
believes  her  to  be  one  of  the  heathen  warriors. 
The  composer,  by  means  of  four  string  instru- 
ments (three  violas,  and  a  double  bass),  unfolds 
before  our  mind  a  picture  which  reflects,  with 
great  dramatic  truth  and  life,  the  inner,  passion- 
ate emotions  of  the  two  eager  combatants,  and 
also  the  spirited  exciting  combat.  The  words 
of  the  poet,  sung  in  recitative  style,  describe 


206 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 


this.  A  passage  in  triple  time  imitates  and  rep- 
resents the  hasty  and  impetuous  approach  of 
the  horses.  Scales,  played  in  alternate  and  quick 


J31.   a. 


succession,  open  the  duel,  and  in  the  hottest  of 
the  fight  break  free  from  control,  and  dissolve  in 
chords  played  with  great  rapidity  in  the  manner 


of  the  tremolo.     The  strings  struck  with  fingers, 
instead  of  with  the  bow,  pizzicato  as  we  call  it 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 


207 


to-day,  produce  chords  that  imitate  the  noise  of 
the  warriors'  helmets  striking  against  each  other 


c. 


^^^=fc3^=[  }    r      | 


9^ 


Passages  of  syncopated  notes  give  an  ingenious 
picture  of  the  close  struggle  of  the  combatants. 


0                        *T      *-!         I         -I 

/*  :      *      * 

-^  —  ?  —  1 

i{C\j  &  0  —  • 

—  *  —  ^1  «  — 

-*  —  s  —  i 

!                1                  !                1 

* 

o        ^/       i 

9  1 

2  —  j»  —  ^  —  t— 

i  —  p  —  «-      ^  —  E 

3=3=3 

In  their  eager  desire  for  victory,  they  grasp,  they 
avoid,  they  deceive  each  other.     At  last,  when 


^-^-J- 


I       I       I 


^s 


i 


±Zl 


208 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 


-I — I- 


J    J^1 

JB. 0- — -f 


'        I 


35 


gnad-Ly-4^ 


rfc: 


1 


li^rr~^  —  =i4^~i=j=^ 

^zii 

^ 

— 

-^ 

E3 

F=f=    -f      ^^r-^V? 

t   •* 

<"^*     s?             ^             (^             f? 

—  i  —  I 

\ 

^  — 

* 

HH 

r     r     r     r 

Clorinda  is  wounded  by  a  stroke  from  Tancred's 
sword,  and  they  interrupt  the  fight,  the  major 
key  changes  into  a  minor.  Fatigued,  exhausted, 
lifting  the  helmet  of  his  wounded  and  dying 
supposed  enemy,  Tancred  recognizes  Clorinda, 
the  woman  he  loves  so  much.  I  give  you 


s 


/z. 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 


209 


a  detailed  description  of  this  remarkable  ef- 
fort of  descriptive  dramatic  music,  as  it  is  one 
of  the  most  striking  documents  of  musical  art 
at  this  early  epoch.  With  a  keen  sense  and 
great  ingenuity,  Monteverde  here  for  the  first 
time  used  instrumental  effects  entirely  different 
from  the  vocal  ones,  and  opened  the  road  to  his 
successors.  "  It  is  well  to  know,"  he  says,  "  that 
I  am  the  author  of  the  invention  and  the  first  use 
of  this  manner  of  writing,  so  necessary  in  musi- 
cal dramatic  art ;  for,  without  .its  knowledge, 
musical  art  was  incomplete,  having  thus  far 
only  expressed  the  quiet  and  the  soft."  When 
nvst  performed,  the  instrumentalists  thought  it 


H 


210  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

ridiculous  to  repeat  the  same  note  sixteen  times 
(tremolando)  ;  but  Monteverde,  sure  of  his  de- 
sign, and  convinced  of  the  dramatic  truth  of  his 
intentions,  removed  their  objections;  while,  at 
the  same  time,  he  taught  them  how  to  execute 
the  new  difficulties :  and  the  effect  of  the  per- 
formance of  this  scene  was  astonishing,  over- 
whelming. He  thus  at  once  surpassed  all  his 
predecessors  in  their  efforts  to  produce  dramatic 
music. 

Though  this  manner  of  tone  painting  —  that 
is,  expressing  and  representing  to  the  mind,  by 
means  of  instrumental  effects  and  combinations, 
the  different  emotions  and  situations  the  poem 
thus  describes  —  is  in  a  certain  degree  a  new  in- 
vention attributed  to  Monteverde,  yet,  in  fact, 
it  is  only  a  transposition,  for  the  peculiar  mecha- 
nism of  instruments,  of  what  had  already  been 
done  by  Monteverde  himself,  and  by  other  mas- 
ters who  lived  before  and  with  him,  in  some  of 
their  madrigals  and  chansons.  I  take,  for  in- 
stance, "La  Battaglia  Taliana,"  a  battle-piece  by 
Matthew  le  Maistre,  from  the  year  1552,  and 
composed  for  four  voices.  It  is  an  extremBly 
lively,  spirited,  and  ingenious  tone-picture  :  the 
sound  of  the  trumpet,  the  booming  of  the  Can- 
non, the  rattling  of  musketry,  the  gallop  of  the 
horses,  and  all  the  excitement  of  a  lively  con- 
test, are  imitated  very  faithfully  by  means  oi 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  211 

vocal  combinations  and  characteristic  syllables 
and  words.  Mouteverde,  endowed  with  great 
penetration  and  practical  sense,  no  doubt  under- 
stood at  once  with  what  great  advantage  and 
effect,  instruments,  in  preference  to  voices,  may 
be  used  in  similar  forms,  leaving  to  each  one  of 
them  its  own  peculiarity,  but,  when  combined, 
drawing  out  of  them  such  resources  as  render 
his  tone-picture  more  complete,  more  effective. 
In  this  sense,  he  may  be  regarded,  and  perhaps 
with  more  reason  than  any  other  of  his  contem- 
poraries, as  the  real  creator  of  modern  dramatic 
and  instrumental  music. 

With  the  gradual  introduction  of  the  dramatic 
element,  the  formal  construction  of  musical  art 
changed  entirely.  The  distinguishing  charac- 
teristics of  the  ecclesiastical  keys  are,  a  strict 
use  of  diatonic  melodic  forms,  and  the  observ- 
ance of  the  relative  position  of  the  semi-tone 
(mi  fa)  in  all  the  scales  or  modes  (see  these 
scales  in  the  first  lecture).  Through  this,  each 
one  of  the  modes  is  subjected  to  a  peculiar  har- 
monic treatment,  and  different  closing  formulas 
(cadenzas) .  The  difference  between  the  various 
keys  is  thus  more  marked  than  that  between 
our  modern  major  and  minor  keys,  and  their 
transposition  to  other  degrees.  This  led  the  old 
writers  to  attribute  to  every  one  of  the  ecclesi- 
astical keys  the  power  of  individual  expression 


212  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

and  effect ;  but,  like  some  of  our  modern  theo 
rists,  who  vainly  endeavor  to  explain,  in  a  simi- 
lar way,  the  character  of  our  major  and  minor 
keys,  these  old  authors  do  not  at  all  agree  as  to 
the  nature  of  feeling  expressed  by  each  ecclesi- 
astical key.  Towards  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth 
century,  however,  freer  rules  in  the  practice  of 
the  old  modes  began  to  be  made  use  of ;  adhe- 
rence to  their  purely  diatonic  character  became 
gradually  less  strict.  Through  the  efforts  of  the 
madrigal  composers,  and  especially  the  masters 
of  the  Venetian  school,  the  chromatic  element, 
degree  by  degree,  modified  the  austerity  of  the 
diatonic  character  of  the  ecclesiastical  keys : 
for,  in  the  madrigal,  composers  moved  more  inde- 
pendently in  formal  construction  ;  and,  by  means 
of  the  harmonic  innovations,  so  freely  introduced 
in  the  madrigal,  the  rigid  and  long-sanctioned 
ecclesiastical  forms  of  the  old  mass  began,  in  the 
course  of  time,  to  be  entirely  abandoned.  Space 
will  not  allow  me  to  enter  into  more  detail  on  the 
construction  of  the  ecclesiastical  keys.  For  a 
closer  study,  consult  J.  J.  Fux's  "  Gradus  ad  Par- 
nassum  "  (1725,  Vienna),  and  Padre  Martini's 
"  Esemplare  osia  Saggio  fondamentale  pratico  di 
Contrappunto  "  (1774-75,  2  vols.  Bologna). 
But,  above  all,  I  would  refer  to  the  actual  musi- 
cal works  of  the  old  church  composers. 

Monteverde  was    one  of   the    first    masters 


IlIfiTOKT  OF  MUSIC.  213 

(perhaps  the  first)  who  freely  introduced  the 
chord  of  the  dominant  seventh,  in  our  modern 
sense ;  through  this  he  contributed,  more  than 
any  other  composer,  to  the  overthrow  of  the  ec- 
clesiastical keys,  and  the  substitution  instead,  of 
our  modern  tonalities,  governed  by  the  dominant 
seventh,  and  the  tonic.  These  modes  lie  at  the 
sources  of  nearly  all  folk-songs  and  dance-tunes. 
Instrumental  music,  in  a  great  degree  founded 
on  these  popular  forms,  thus  created  its  own 
forms  and  tonal  modes.  With  the  supremacy 
of  the  major  and  minor  modes,  the  material  of 
our  modern  musical  art  began  to  develop  itself 
with  more  freedom,  with  more  fluency,  render- 
ing it  at  the  same  time  more  pliable  to  the  wants 
and  requirements  of  the  dramatic  and  instru- 
mental composer. 

Monteverde's  successors,  such  as  Carissimi, 
Cesti,  Scarlatti,  took  up  the  work  of  perfecting 
dramatic  music,  as  well  as  of  using  the  instru- 
ments with  more  refinement  and  effect.  The 
noisy  wind  instruments,  forever  out  of  tune 
(their  construction  having  not  yet  attained  such 
a  high  degree  of  perfection  as  in  our  modern 
times),  disappear  entirely  from  the  orchestra,  01 
are  employed  with  more  discretion.  The  ac- 
companiment is  limited  to  string  instruments, 
the  harpsichord,  and  the  lute  or  theorbe 
In  the  church,  instead  of  trombones,  cornetti, 


214  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC, 

and  trumpets,  string  instruments  are  frequently 
united  with  the  organ.  Thus  more  contrast  and 
artistic  effect  was  gained  in  the  performance  of 
cantatas,  masses,  and  oratorios. 

With  the  perfection  of  construction  in  the 
family  of  string  instruments,  such  as  violins, 
violas,  violoncellos,  and  double  basses,  by  the 
celebrated  violin-makers,  Amati,  Guarneri,  Stra- 
divari, Stainer,  &c.,  some  of  whom  were  already 
celebrated  at  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century, 
the  art  of  violin-playing  was  first  brought  in 
Italy  to  that  high  degree  of  execution  and  artis- 
tic performance,  in  which  the  Italian  virtuosi 
soon  rivalled  the  great  singers.  The  musician, 
who  through  his  mastery  as  a  performer  on  the 
violin,  and  also  through  the  fine  and  noble  com- 
positions which  he  wrote  and  published  for  this 
instrument,  contributed  more  than  any  other  of 
his  contemporaries  towards  the  development  of 
our  modern  chamber  music,  was  Arcanyelo  Co- 
relli,  born  in  1653,  at  Fusignano,  near  Bologna. 
Corelli,  when  scarcely  yet  known,  made  a  tour 
through  Germany,  where  he  played  at  some 
princely  courts  with  great  applause  and  distinc- 
tion. After  a  few  years  of  residence  in  that 
country,  and  principally  at  Munich,  he  went 
back  to  Italy,  and  made  Rome  his  permanent 
home.  Corelli,  as  a  violin-player,  is  said  to  have 
distingulshe  1  himself  through  a  round,  pure,  and 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  215 

very  refined  tone ;  and,  though  his  technical 
skill  and  execution  of  great  difficulties  were  sur- 
passed by  many  good  orchestral  leaders  of  his 
time,  yet,  through  his  noble,  exquisite,  and 
truthful  expression,  and  his  classic  compositions 
he  surpassed  them  all.  As  such,  he  is  with  right 
considered  the  father  of  violin-playing.  Corelli 
was  a  very  modest  and  amiable  artist,  but  a  very 
sensitive  one.  Handel,  while  in  Rome,  had  one 
of  his  overtures  performed  there.  Corelli  played 
the  first  violin  in  the  orchestra  on  this  occasion, 
and  according  to  his  own  style,  which  was  very 
refined,  but  full  of  sentiment,  missed  the  spirit- 
ed, grand  idea  of  the  composer.  Handel,  los- 
ing all  patience,  took  in  his  customary  brusque 
way  Corelli's  violin,  in  order  to  show  him  how 
he  meant  to  have  his  work  played.  "  But,  my 
dear  Saxon,"  said  Corelli  very  gently,  "  your 
overture  is  written  in  the  French  style,  which  I 
do  not  understand."  Corelli  had  already 
the  fickleness  of  the  public,  which 
often  condemns,  and  forgets  next  morning  the 
artist  it  vociferously  applauded  the  evening  be- 
fore. While  on  a  short  visit  to  Naples,  a  virtu- 
oso on  the  hautboy,  and  another  on  the  vio- 
lin, —  both  much  inferior  to  him,  —  won 
the  admiration  and  the  applause  of  the  Ro- 
mans ;  thus,  when  back  in  Rome,  he  thought 
himself  forgotten.  This  caused  him  so  much  cha- 


216  HISTORY  OF  MUSIO. 

grin,  tha,,  it  is  said  to  have  shortened  his  days 
He  died  in  1712.  CoreHi  published  a  great  many 
works  for  string  instruments,  with  accompani- 
ment of  a  figured  bass.  Other  great  violin-play- 
ers at  this  epoch  were  Greminiani,  a  pupil  of 
Oorolli,  Vivaldi,  Veraceini,  and,  above  all,  Criit- 
seppe  Tartini,  born  at  Istria,  in  1692.  To  judge 
from  Tartini's  compositions  for  the  violin,  he 
must  have  possessed  an  extraordinary  mastery 
over  his  instrument :  they  are  full  of  all  sorts 
of  difficult  passages,  trills,  double-trills,  and 
skips.  His  playing  was  distinguished  by  a  full, 
round,  and  pure  tone  ;  by  great  elegance,  but  a 
free,  yet  energetic  bowing.  Tartini's  early  life 
was  full  of  romance.  As  a  youth,  his  parents 
wished  him-to  enter  a  Franciscan  convent ;  but 
he  had  no  inclination  for  such  a  secluded  life. 
He  afterwards  frequented  the  University  of  Pa- 
dua, in  order  to  study  law.  Endowed  with  rare 
intelligence  and  great  natural  facilit}r,  he  mas- 
tered his  studies  with  ease  ;  and,  besides  his  con- 
tinual cultivation  of  the  violin,  he  found  ample 
time  to  devote  to  the  art  of  fencing,  which  he 
loved  passionately.  Having  become  very  expert 
in  the  handling  of  the  sword,  and  being  also 
confident  of  his  own  ability,  his  quarrelsome 
temper  induced  him  to  fight  one  duel  after  the 
other :  he  thus  neglected  his  studies,  and  even 
entertained  the  idea  of  establishing  himself  ic 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  217 

Paris,  as  a  fencing-master.  He  would  have  prob- 
ably thus  been  lost  to  musical  art,  of  which  he 
was  destined  to  be  in  more  than  one  respect  a 
most  worthy  representative;  but,  having  fallen 
in  love  with  a  young  lady  of  Padua,  the  niece 
of  Cardinal  Cornaro,  he  married  her  secretly. 
This  secret  union  having  become  publicly  known, 
his  parents,  irritated  at  his  ill-conduct,  refused 
him  all  further  subsidies ;  and  the  cardinal,  en- 
raged at  his  boldness,  set  the  police  to  watch /t**4**1 
him.  Tartini  fled  towards  Rome.  On  his  way 
to  that  city,  he  met  a  priest,  a  near  relation  of 
his,  who,  taking  pity  on  his  reduced  situation, 
invited  him  to  his  own  convent  in  the  town  of 
Assisa.  At  this  convent  our  artist  hid  for  two 
years ;  even  his  young  wife  did  not  know  what 
had  become  of  him.  In  this  solitude,  and  much 
influenced  also  by  the  kindness  and  the  piety  of 
the  monks  of  the  convent,  he  devoted  all  his 
time  to  the  study  of  music,  especially  violin- 
playing  ;  one  of  the  monks,  being  an  accom- 
plished musician,  assisted  him  much  in  his 
studies.  After  a  secret  sojourn  of  two  years  in  the 
convent,  he  was  discovered  by  one  of  his  own 
townsmen,  when  playing  in  the  church  of  the 
convent  at  some  festivity.  The  cardinal  having 
meanwhile  softened  down  towards  him,  he  was 
able  to  return  to  his  family,  —  a  better  and  wiser 
man.  He  afterwards  became  chapel-master  at 


218  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

the  principal  church  in  Padua.  He  wrote  and 
published  a  great  many  compositions  of  classic 
value  for  string  instruments,  endeavored  to  es- 
tablish a  new  system  of  harmony,  founded  a 
music  school  at  Padua,  and  formed  a  great 
many  excellent  pupils.  I  will  here  only  mention 
the  distinguished  Nardini.  Tartini  was  often 
called  by  the  Italians,  II  Maestro  delle  nazioni. 
His  sonata,  "  The  Devil's  Trill,"  is  well  known  ; 
the  circumstance  that  gave  existence  as  well  as 
its  title  to  this  remarkable  composition  is  less  so. 
Tartini  writes,  "  One  night,  in  1713,  I  dreamed 
that  I  had  made  a  compact  with  the  Devil,  who 
had  entered  my  service :  every  thing  succeeded 
according  to  my  wishes  ;  my  desires  were  always 
forseen,  and  exceeded  even,  by  the  anxiety  of 
my  servant.  I  fancied  that  I  gave  him  my  vio- 
lin to  play  some  airs  to  me  ;  but  I  was  greatly 
surprised  when  I  heard  so  beautiful,  so  original 
a  sonata,  executed  with  such  superior  intelli- 
gence, that  I  had  never  even  imagined  any 
thing  that  could  be  placed  in  comparison  with  it. 
In  breathless  astonishment  and  delight,  I  awoke, 
and  seized  my  violin,  hoping  to  recall  at  least 
a  part  of  what  I  had  heard ;  but  in  vain.  The 
piece  I  then  composed  is  certainly  the  best  I  ever 
wrote ;  and  I  still  call  it,  "  The  Devil's  Sonata : " 
but  it  is  so  far  beneath  what  I  heard  in  my 
dream,  that  I  would  then  have  broken  my  violin, 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  219 

and  abandoned  music  forever,  had  I  been  in  a 
condition  to  do  so." 

Besides  the  classic  schools  of  violin-playing 
which  the  masters  already  mentioned  founded 
in  Italy,  the  art  of  harpsichord,  or  piano-forte 
playing,  could  also  claim,  at  this  epoch,  worthy 
and  ingenious  composers  and  performers.  The 
greatest  among  all  was  Dominico  Scarlatti,  born 
in  1683,  and  son  of  the  renowned  composer 
Allessandro  Scarlatti.  Dominico  Scarlatti  also 
composed  operas  and  church  music,-  but  his 
greatest  importance  and  merit  lay  in  his  compo- 
sitions for  the  harpsichord.  He  designated  them 
sonatas,  though  they  are  entirely  different  from 
the  form  which  we  to-day  call  sonata :  they 
are  pieces  in  one  movement,  generally  in  two 
parts,  built  upon  very  simple,  but  very  spirited, 
original,  and  always  graceful  motivos.  They 
are  perfect  genre  pictures,  full  of  elegance,  full 
of  poetical  contrast,  developing,  in  an  ingenious 
manner,  all  the  resources  of  his  great  and  per- 
fect mastery  over  the  instrument.  Most  of 
these  unique  pieces  sound  as  fresh  and  melodi- 
ous as  if  they  had  been  composed  only  yester- 
day. The  following  extract  may  give  you  an 
idea  of  Scarlatti's  powers  as  a  harpsichord  player : 
Thomas  Roseingrave,  himself  a  performer  of 
some  eminence  on  the  harpsichord  and  organ, 
while  on  a  visit  in  Venice,  was  invited,  as  a 


220  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

stranger  and  a  virtuoso,  to  an  acadeirxa  at  the 
house  of  some  nobleman,  where,  among  others, 
he  was  requested  to  sit  do \vnto  the  harpsichord, 
and  favor  the  company  with  a  toccata,  as  a  spe- 
cimen della  sua  virtu,  of  his  capacity ;  and, 
says  he,  "  finding  myself  rather  better  in  cour- 
age and  finger  than  usual,  I  exerted  myself,  and 
fancied,  by  the  applause  I  received,  that  my  per- 
formance had  made  some  impression  on  the  com- 
pany." After  a  cantata  had  been  sung,  a  young 
man,  dressed  in  black,  ani  in  a  black  wig,  who 
had  stood  in  one  corner  of  the  room,  very  quiet 
and  attentive  while  Roseingrave  played,  being 
asked  to  sit  down  to  the  harpsichord,  began  to 
play.  Roseingrave  said,  when  he  had  heard  him, 
that  he  thought  ten  hundred  devils  had  been  at 
the  instrument ;  he  never  heard  such  passages 
of  execution  and  effect  before.  The  performance 
so  far  surpassed  his  own,  and  every  degree  of 
perfection  to  which  he  thought  it  possible  he 
should  ever  arrive,  -that,  if  he  had  been  in  sight 
of  any  instrument  with  which  to  have  done  the 
deed,  he  would  have  cut  off  his  own  fingers. 
Upon  inquiring  the  name-  of  this  extraordinary 
performer,  he  was  told  that  it  was  Dominico 
Scarlatti. 

Other  distinguished  Italian  performers  on  the 
harpsichord,  and,  at  the  same  time,  composers 
of  merit  for  this  favorite  instrument,  at  this 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  221 

epoch,  were  Durante,  Paradise,  Porpor^i,    Gf-as- 
parini,  and  Alberti. 

France  at  this  time  also  claims  having  pro- 
duced clever  and  original  harpsichord  and  organ 
players,  such  as  Chambonnieres,  d 'Angelbert,  the 
Couperins,  MarcTiand,  Daquin,  Rameau.  Fran- 
fois  Couperin,  called  the  great,  as  he  was  con- 
sidered the  most  distinguished  master  of  an  illus- 
trious family  of  musicians,  was  born  at  Paris,  in 
1678.  To  judge  from  his  compositions,  which 
are  elegant,  full  of  spirit  and  originality,  he 
must  have  been  a  very  accomplished  performer ; 
but  his  pieces  are  not  seldom  so  overladen  with 
trills  and  other  ornamental  notes,  indispensable 
to  an  instrumental  performer  at  that  time,  that 
the  graceful  and  simple  melodies  are,  so  to  say, 
entirely  smothered.  Couperin  also  published 
an  instruction-book,  "  L'art  de  toucher  le  Clave- 
cin," which  was  of  great  influence  on  the  further 
development  of  piano-playing.  Couperin  died 
in  1733.  His  greatest  immediate  successor,  was 
Jean  Philippe  Rameau,  born  at  Dijon,  in  1683, 
distinguished  as  theorist,  opera  composer,  and 
performer  on  the  organ  and  the  harpsichord. 
Rameau's  compositions  for  the  harpsichord  are, 
in  harmonious  treatment,  as  well  as  in  melodi- 
ous invention,  richer  than  those  of  Couperin  : 
they  are  fresh,  original,  graceful,  and  very  in- 
genious in  formal  construction ;  some  of  them 


222  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

are  real  little  gems.  Rameau  died  in  1741,  and 
may  be  considered  as  the  last  great  master  of 
a  series  of  fine  performers  of  this  old  French 
school  of  piano  and  organ  playing.  The  custom 
of  giving  to  many  compositions,  and  also  to  dif- 
ferent dances,  for  the  harpsichord  or  piano-forte, 
characteristic  titles,  such  as  "  La  Rare,"  "  La 
Favorite,"  "  La  Fleurie  ou  la  tendre  Nanette," 
"  Le  Reveilmatin,"  "  La  Fanfarinette,"  "  La 
Musette,"  &c.,  &c.,  suggesting  to  our  mind  cer- 
tain ideas,  intended  by  the  composer  to  be  con- 
veyed through  them,  is  not  altogether  a  modern 
invention.  We  find  that  the  above-mentioned 
French  composers,  as  well  as  German,  English, 
and  Italian  instrumentalists  of  that  time,  made 
frequent  use  of  this  means  ;  to  which,  however,  it 
is  well  not  to  attach  too  much  importance,  as  it 
easily  leads  us  to  overrate  the  insignificant  and 
empty  fabrications  of  mere  mechanists,  who 
vainly  seek  to  cover  their  utter  want  of  invent- 
iveness and  necessary  knowledge,  by  high- 
sounding,  suggestive  titles.  It  is  much  more 
easy  to  find  a  pretty  title  for  a  piece  than  to 
discover  fine  and  effective  melo'dies. 

Of  English  instrumental  composers  and  harp- 
sichord Dlayers  at  this  epoch,  I  must  mention 
Lawes,  Locke,  Roseingrave,  Purcell,  and  Dr. 
Blow.  Henry  Purcell  is  the  most  important 
among  them.  Some  of  his  sonatas  for  string  in- 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  223 

struments,  and  a  harpsichord,  and  also  some  of 
his  pieces  in  the  dance  forms  of  his  time,  are 
spirited  and  full  of  fancy.  He  well  appreciated 
the  melodious  and  elegant  style  which  distin- 
guished the  compositions  of  such  Italian  masters 
as  Carissimi,  Cesti,  Colonna,  Bassoni,  Stradella, 
and,  no  doubt,  studied  their  works  diligently 
and  beneficially;  for,  in  the  preface  to  his 
twelve  sonatas  for  two  violins,  and  a  bass  for 
the  harpsichord  or  organ,  he  says,  "  For  its 
author,  he  has  faithfully  endeavored  a  just  imi- 
tation of  the  most  famed  Italian  masters,  princi- 
pally to  bring  the  seriousness  and  gravity  of  that 
sort  of  music  into  vogue  and  reputation  among  our 
countrymen,  whose  humor  it  is  time  now  should 
begin  to  loath  the  levity  and  balladry  of  our  neigh- 
bors (the  French).  The  attempt  he  confesses 
'to  be  bold  and  daring,  there  being  pens  and  ar- 
tists of  more  eminent  abilities,  much  better  quali- 
fied for  the  employment  than  his  or  himself, 
which  he  well  hopes  these,  his  weak  endeavors, 
will  in  due  time  provoke  and  inflame  to  a  more.  j 
accurate  understanding.  He  is  not  ashamed  toarr< 
own  his  unskilfulriess  in  the  Italian  language ; 
but  that  is  the  unhappiness  of  his  education, 
which  cannot  justly  be  counted  his  fault :  how- 
ever, he  thinks  he  may  warrantably  affirm,  tl 
he  is  not  mistaken  in  the  power  of  the  Italian 
notes,  or  elegancy  of  their  compositions." 


224  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

After  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury, instrumental  music  made  great  progress, 
especially  in  Germany  ;  and  the  vast  number  of 
distinguished  talents  who  devoted  all  their  ener- 
gy and  attention  to  this  branch  of  musical  art 
soon  assured  its  supremacy  in  Germany.  The 
organ  and  the  harpsichord,  however,  were  the 
instruments  first  cultivated  with  the  greatest 
success.  Since  the  organ  was  to  lead,  and  at  the 
same  time  to  accompany,  by  means  of  solemn 
and  noble,  but  simple  harmonies,  the  sacred 
song,  the  chorale  of  the  Protestant  congrega- 
tions, its  importance  began  to  be  more  and  more 
conspicuous,  and,  as  such,  necessarily  also  bet- 
ter understood  by  organists.  The  chorale,  which 
grew  up  and  was  formed  in  the  bosom  of  the 
Protestant  church,  gained  for  the  Protestant  or- 
ganist the  same  meaning,  the  same  importance, 
that  the  Gregorian  chant  so  justly  obtained  for 
the  great  church  composers  of  the  fifteenth  and 
sixteenth  centuries :  it  forms  the  basis  of  the 
German-protestant  church  music.  The  German 
organists,  the  hereditary  and  faithful  cultivators 
of  that  great  art,  counterpoint,  in  its  broadest 
Si-nse,  emploj'ed  all  their  science  and  knowledge 
to  enrich,  by  means  of  artistic  and  suitable  or- 
gan-playing, the  musical  part  of  the  Protestant 
church  service,  always  making  the  chorale  the 
ground,  the  principal  theme  of  their  efforts. 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  225 

But  how  simple  and  modest  were  the  positions 
and  the  pretensions  of  these  honest  old  organ- 
ists !  And  yet,  how  deep  and  truthful  are  the 
works  which  they  destined  for  the  adornment  of 
religious  service !  It  must  have  been  only 
through  an  exceptional  perseverance  and  appli- 
cation, coupled  with  great  love  and  veneration 
for  the  noble  art,  that  they  were  able  to  create 
such  fine  and  numerous  works ;  for  the  method 
of  instruction  was  then  yet  a  complicated  one, 
full  of  unnecessary  difficulties,  derived  in  a  great 
measure  from  the  pedantic  mania  of  surround- 
ing it  with  puerile  mysteries.  But  such  mas- 
ters as  Bach  and  Handel  have  proven  what  a 
solid  foundation  of  musical  education  this  school 
of  German  organists  was.  The  Gregorian  chant 
and  the  Protestant  chorale  run  like  a  red  thread 
through  the  musical  part  of  the  church  service 
of  the  two  great  religious  denominations :  these 
really  sacred  songs  of  the  two  churches  are  the 
first  impressions  which  touch  the  soul  of  the 
young  Christian  on  his  entrance  into  the  Church, 
and  are,  as  such,  the  indestructible  echoes  of  hii 
first  sacred,  associations.  As  Holy  Writ  forim- 
the  invariable  foundation  of  the  religious  and 
moral  principles  of  the  true  Christian,  so  the 
Gregorian  chant  and  the  chorale  ought  to  form 
the  ground  and  invariable  theme  of  the  true 
church  composer ;  and,  as  long  as  composers  un- 
it 


226  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

dersiood  and  valued  this  inestimable,  noble,  and 
really  sacred  practice,  their  works  composed  for 
the  Church  truthfully  and  appropriately  fulfilled 
their  solemn  office  :  these  works  were  thus  im- 
bued with  the  sacred  character  derived  from  the 
themes  of  the  sacred  songs :  then,  necessarily, 
a  distinct  line  of  demarcation  was  drawn  between 
secular  and  sacred  music.  How  is  it  to-day  ? 
A  glance  at  the  meaningless  fabrications,  des- 
/< „/.«/  tined  for  the  Church  by  our  would^be^church 
iomposers,  will  at  once  betray  to  you  their  pro- 
Cane  models.  The  frivolous,  worldly  variations, 
and  silly,  sentimental  organ  voluntaries,  which 
greet  you  at  your  entrance  into  sacred  places, 
will  tell  you  the  source  from  which  the  pliant 
organist  has  drawn.  It  is  the  fashionable  opera 
of  to-day,  with  its  worn-out  phrases,  that  has 
taken  the  place  of  the  original  sacred  songs ;  it 
is  the  empty  modern  ballad  that  has  supplanted 
the  Gregorian  chant  and  the  chorale  :  and,  ac- 
cording to  my  conviction,  only  a  return  to  the 
true  source  of  sacred  Christian  church  music 
will  enable  our  church  composers  to  resuscitate 
real  church  art. 

The  list  of  celebrated  German  organists  who 
lived  before  and  with  Bach  and  Handel  is  long. 
I  shall  only  mention  Samuel  Scheldt,  John  J. 
Froberger  (the  distinguished  pupil  of  the  re- 
nowned Frescobaldi),  J.  C.  Kerl,  J.  Pachebel^ 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  221 

Buxtehude,  Reinken,  Zacliau  (the  master  of 
Handel),  Creorge  Muff  at,  Fischer,  Kuhnau,  the 
predecessor  of  Bach  at  Leipzig  (and  the  first 
who  has  written  a  sonata  in  which  we  may  trace 
the  first  dawn  of  our  present  sonata  form),  and 
the  different  able  organists  of  that  musical  fam- 
ily, of  which  J.  S.  Bach  was  the  greatest  mem- 
bert  while  he  was  at  the  same  time  the  greatest 
of  all  organists.  The  vast  number  of  immortal 
works,  in  every  style,  which  Bach  has  left  foi 
the  organ,  will  serve  as  the  foundation  of  all 
true  organ-playing,  as  they  will  also  remain  the 
lofty  study  of  every  earnest,  striving  organist  for 
all  time  to  come.  Handel,  great  in  every  art- 
form  known  at  his  time,  was  not  less  great  as 
an  organist.  In  his  concertos  for  the  organ,  he 
has  deposited  such  a  treasure  of  original  and 
beautiful  ideas,  that  it  needs  only  the  loving  and 
aspiring  mind  of  the  true  artist  to  bring  them 
to  light  again.  And  in  what  glory  do  Handel's 
ideas  shine,  when  truly  interpreted !  All  these 
organists  were  also  distinguished  players  on  the 
harpsichord,  and  industrious  composers  for  that 
instrument.  The  favorite  form  of  these  old 
composers  and  harpsichord  players  was  the 
suite;  that  is,  a  succession  of  several  move- 
ments or  pieces  in  different  forms  (lessons,  as 
they  were  also  called  by  old  writers),  but  usu- 
ally all  in  the  same  key,  These  movements, 


228  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

like  those  of  our  modern  sonata,  —  wliich,  in 
fact,  is  the  substitute  of  the  old  suite,  —  were 
so  arranged,  as  to  present  the  necessary  aestheti- 
cal  contrasts :  they  differed  in  time,  motion,  and 
rhythm  ;  yet,  being  all  in  the  same  key,  the  in- 
ner relation  was  to  a  certain  degree  preserved. 
These  movements  consisted  of  pieces  in  the 
usual  dance  forms,  such  as  the  Allemande,  the 
Couranto,  the  Gavotte,  the  Bounce,  the  Passa- 
caglia,  the  Passepied,  the  Sarabanda,  the  Pavane, 
the  Air,  the  Minuetto,  the  Gigue,  the  Chaconne, 
&c.,  &c.  The  Preludium  also  found  a  place  in 
the  suite.  Towards  the  latter  part  of  the  eigh- 
teenth century,  the  suite  gave  place  to  the 
partita,  to  which  our  modern  sonata  finally  suc- 
ceeded. I  will  give  here  the  meaning  which 
the  teachers  and  composers  of  the  seventeenth 
and  eighteenth  centuries  attached  to  the  charac- 
ter and  effect  of  the  different  movements  which 
composed  a  suite,  or  a  course  of  lessons  for  vari- 
ous instruments  :  this  gives  us  a  clear  insight  into 
the  art-practice  of  our  forefathers.. 

"  The  Prelude  is  commonly  a  piece  of  confused, 
wild,  shapeless,  intricate  play  (as  most  use  it)  ; 
in  wliich  no  perfect  form,  shape,  or  uniformity, 
can  be  perceived,  but  a  random  business,  —  pat- 
tering and  groping  up  and  down  from  one  stop  or 
key  to  another,  —  and  generally  so  performed  as 
to  make  trial  whether  the  instrument  be  well 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  229 

in  tune  or  not."  Bach,  however,  gave  to  the 
prelude  a  more  artistic  form,  full  of  poetical  con- 
tents. 

The  Pcrvane  is  a  grave  and  majestic  Spanish 
dance,  wherein  the  dancers  turn  round,  and 
make  a  wheel  or  tail  before  each  other,  like 
that  of  a  peacock ;  whence  its  name.  It  was 
anciently  in  great  repute,  and  was  danced  by  gen- 
tlemen with  cap  and  sword,  by  those  of  the  long 
robe  in  their  gowns,  by  princes  with  their  man- 
tles, and  by  ladies  with  their  gowns  trailing 
after  them.  The  time  thereof  is  the  slowest 
and  gravest  part  of  instrumental  music,  gen- 
erally consisting  of  three  strains. 

The  Couranto  is  a  piece  in  triple  time,  com- 
monly of  two  strains,  and  full  of  sprightfulness 
and  vigor,  lively,  brisk,  and  cheerful. 

The  Minuetto  is  a  composition  in  triple  time, 
of  rather  slow  and  graceful  motion.  It  is  said 
to  have  been  invented  at  Poitou,  in  France. 

TJie  Sarabanda,  probably  originally  derived 
from  Spain,  is  of  a  slow  and  serious  character. 
It  is  also  in  triple  time. 

"  A  Tattle  de  Moy  is  a  new-fashioned  thing, 
much  like  a  Saraband,  only  it  has  more  of  con- 
ceit and  humor  in  it." 

"  Jigs  are  light,  squibbish  things,  only  fit  for 
fantastical,  and  easy,  light-headed  people,  and 
are  of  any  sort  of  time." 


2:30  VISTOiiY  OF  MUSIU. 

TJie  (rrfXv  Js  £•  dance  tune  of  two  strains,  in 
common  tin0,.  It  is  sometimes  of  a  brisk  and 
lively  nature,  p-nd  sometimes  also  of  a  tender 
and  rather  slow  movement. 

The  Chaconne  (ciacona)  is  a  composition,  the 
characteristic  of  which  is  a  ground  bass,  con- 
sisting of  four  measures  of  th^ee  crotchets  each, 
repeated  to  continually-varied  melodies,  called 
couplets.  These  varied  melodies  or  couplets, 
passing  and  re-passing  freely  from  the  m."vjor  to  the 
relative  minor  key,  from  the  grave  to  the  gay, 
from  the  tender  to  the  lively,  —  but  without 
changing  the  motion  of  the  time, — form  those 
interesting  contrasts  which  fetter  the  attention 
of  the  listener.  I  mention,  among  others,  th^ 
wonderful  chaconne  for  violin  alone,  by  J.  S 
Bach. 

The.  Passacaglia,  or  passecaille,  is  properl}"  no- 
more  than  a  chaconne.  The  only  difference  be- 
tween them  is,  that  the  movement  of  the  passe- 
caille is  somewhat  graver,  the  time  softer,  an<? 
the  expression  less  lively. 

The  term  Allemande  represents  two  kinds  of 
composition.  First,  a  German  national  dance 
written  in  common  time,  two  crotchets  in  r 
measure,  and  of  brisk  and  lively  character 
Then  a  grave  and  slow  air  or  melcdy  of  fou> 
crotchets  in  a  measure. 

The  suites  of  Bach  and  Handel  are  such  ex- 


EISTOR?   OF  MUSIC.  231 

quisite,  fresh,  and  original  compositions,  that  to 
ignore  them  is  k>  deprive  one's  self  of  genuine 
musical  enjoyment,  —  every  one  of  their  move- 
ments is  so  characteristic,  and  betrays  in  every 
bar  the  master-hand  that  formed  them. 

The  suites  of  Grottlieb  Muff  at,  a  pupil  of  the  re- 
nowned theorist  and  composer,  J.  J.  Fux,  of  Vi- 
enna, are  also  rich  in  fancy  and  harmony,  and 
worthy  productions  for  the  harpsichord  of  that 
time.  I  must  also  mention  that  admirable,  well- 
known  classical  work  of  Bach's, — the  "Wohltem- 
perirte  Clavier,"  or  "  Well-tempered  Piano-forte," 
a  collection  of  forty-eight  preludes  and  fugues  in 
all  the  major  and  minor  keys.  So  great  is  the 
artistic  value  and  the  intrinsic  merit  of  this 
work,  that,  like  a  rock,  it  has  withstood  for  more  ^^ 
than  a  century  all  the  changing  pEases"of  taste/  y/ 
influenced  by  the  caprices  and  fashions  of  time. 
Eternal  youth  and  unsurpassed  perfection 
stamp  every  piece  of  the  collection. 

It  is  curious  to  observe  how  long  it  was  before 
these  old  harpsichord  players  learned  to  use  all 
the  five  fingers  as  means  of  artistic  execution  ' 
in  a  manner  that  seems  so  natural  to  us.  Mat- 
theson,  as  late  as  1785,  teaches  yet  the  follow- 
ing fingering. 

For  the  right  hand,  ascending, 
CDEFGABCDE    FGABC 
3     4,  3     4,  3     4,    3     4,    3     4,  3     4,  3     45: 


232  HISTORT  OF  MUSIC. 

descending,    C    B     A     G    F    E     D    C,  &c. 
5    4    3,     2     3,    2    3,    2   3,  &c 
Left  hand,  ascending,  descending  : 
3  2  1,  2  1,  2  1,  2  1,  &c. :  2  3,  2  3,  2  3,  2  3.  &c. 

Bach  was  here,  as  ever,  the  master,  who, 
through  his  keen  sense  and  his  deep  apprecia- 
tion of  the  true,  brought  order  and  system  into 
the  application  of  the  use  of  the  fingers,  for 
more  effective  execution  and  artistic  rendering 
of  the  difficulties  of  keyed  instruments. 

The  orchestral  resources  of  this  epoch,  by 
means  of  diligent  practice  on,  and  continual  im- 
provement of,  the  different  instruments,  were 
brought  to  greater  effect,  principally  through 
those  two  admirable  masters,  Bach  and  Handel, 
who  left  the  ineffaceable  stamp  of  their  genius 
on  every  art-form  that  their  minds  took  hold  of. 
I  need  only  mention  Handel's  hautboy  concer- 
tos, his  "  Fire  Music,"  and  many  of  his  over- 
tures to  operas  and  oratorios ;  Bach's  beautiful 
violin  sonatas,  orchestra  suites,  piano-forte  con- 
certos, and  other  instrumental  works.  They, 
and  their  contemporaries,  were  acquainted  with 
all .  instruments,  except  the  clarinet,  used  in 
our  modern  orchestra;  though  they  did  not 
yet  employ  these  instruments  as  the  means  of 
creating  such  varied,  rich,  and  refined  combina- 
tions, and  brilliant  effects  as  we  are  accustomed 
to  find  in  the  scores  of  the  masters  since  Gluck 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  233 

and  Haydn.  In  their  great  choral  works,  as 
well  as  in  their  purely  instrumental  composi- 
tions, such  as  overtures,  suites,  concertos,  the 
string  quartet  serves  as  foundation,  and  occu- 
pies a  conspicuous  part  throughout ;  .bassoons, 
horns,  trumpets,  kettle-drums,  flutes,  and  haut- 
boys (of  which  they  used  several  kinds,  the  or- 
dinary hautboy,  the  hautboy  d'amore,  and  da 
caccia)  were  added,  either  to  strengthen  the 
sonority  of  greater  choral  masses,  or,  as  is  often 
the  case,  especially  in  Bach's  works,  they  were 
made  to  play  an  individually  important  part  in 
the  different  arias.  These  masters  have,  how- 
ever, proved  in  many  of  their  works,  like  Bach 
in  his  charming  D  major  suite,  that  they  knew 
how  to  create  ingenious  novel  instrumental  effects 
when  necessary.  But  these  effects  grew  out  of 
the  great  idea  which  lay  at  the  root  of  the  mas- 
ters' works ;  they  were  not  used  to  hide  defi-^ffi. 
ciency  of  melodious  inventiveness  under  a  bril- 
liant and  highly-colored  instrumentation. 

The  organ,  the  harpsichord,  and  formerly  the 
lute,  and  the  theorbe,  were  al  ways  found  hi  the 
orchestras  of  these  old  masters.  The  art  of 
playing  an  accompaniment  on  these  instruments, 
according  to  the  complicated  rules  of  thorough 
bass  playing,  seems  to  be  now  almost  a  lost  art ; 
and,  with  this,  the  real  tradition  of  rendering 
Handel's,  Bach's,  and  other  masters'  (their  con- 


234  HISTORY  OF  MUSIC. 

temporaries)  works  is  in  a  great  measure  also  lost. 
We  know  that  Handel  in  his  oratorios,  and  Bach 
in  his  cantatas  and  passion  oratorios,  made  a 
conspicuous  use  of  the  organ,  besides  the  instru- 
mental means  of  which  I  have  already  spoken. 
In  these  works,  intended  and  accepted  as  ideal 
forms  of  Protestant  church  music,  the  organ,  so 
intimately  connected  with  the  religious  traditions 
of  every  Christian  nation,  thus  inevitably  forms 
an  inseparable  part.  And  in  its  austere  gran- 
deur, varied  by  the  resources  of  the  manifold 
stops,  is  it  not,  when  well  handled,  a  worthy  and 
fitting  background  to  such  works  ?  Revive  the 
art  of  true  organ-playing,  as  indicated  by  Bach, 
Handel,  &c.,  in  their  numerous  works  for  this 
instrument,  and  a  great  advance  towards  the 
true  performance  of  many  of  these  masters' 
grand  choral  compositions  will  be  gained.  This, 
however,  would  necessitate  a  deeper  knowledge 
of  the  old  masters'  (in  most  senses,  unrivalled) 
method  than  is  generally  found  among  our  or- 
ganists of  to-day,  and,  with  it,  more  thorough 
study  and  experience  ;  formerly,  masters  like 
Bach  himself,  were  appointed  as  judges  and 
critics  of  the  aspirants  to  responsible  positions. 
These  places  were  not  then  to  be  gained  through 
social  influence  alone,  or,  as  is  now  too  often 
the  case,  in  a  sphere  where  we  least  look  to  find 
it,  —  through  social  hypocrisy  and  intrigue  ! 


HISTORY  OF  MUSIC.  235 

The  impulse  given  to  instrumental  music,  es- 
pecially through  the  labors  and  efforts  of  Bach 
and  his  many  distinguished  disciples  in  the  north 
of  Germany,  and  through  the  influence  of  the 
great  Italian  masters  of  violin-playing  in  the 
south  of  Germany,  was  lasting  and  beneficial  to 
art.  Kings  and  princes,  some  out  of  loye  for 
music,  others  for  ambition's  and  fashion's  sake, 
supported  costly  chapels,  where  an  orchestra, 
composed  of  able  instrumentalists,  was  the  fea- 
ture. Talented  composers  were  engaged  to  pro- 
vide works  exclusively  for  the  wants  of  the 
eager  orchestras  of  these  princely  patrons.  Solos, 
trios,  concertos,  composed  by  the  best  masters 
for  various  instruments,  excited  players  to  de- 
velop their  own  technical  skill,  and  the  qualities 
of  their  chosen  instruments  ;  in  this  way,  such 
players  sometimes  rivalled  great  singers  in  exe- 
cution. Thus  instrumental  practice  gained  a 
prominent  place  and  immense  importance  in 
German  musical  culture  ;  and  thus  also  was 
that  great  modern  German  school  of  instru- 
mental music  prepared,  headed  by  Haydn. 
Mozart,  and  Beethoven. 


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